Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I support the live sheep export industry, but not on any terms, not in any case and not if sheep are going to die like flies on the journey. I support it on the premise that this trade can be undertaken safely, because it has been before. It can be done. As the member for Grey, I represent the farming region in Australia that would be most impacted after Western Australia. Through the last couple of months I, like all members in the place, have had a large number of emails and contacts. However, while some growers have contacted me seeking a cessation of the trade, the predominant sentiment from them by far is a sense of disappointment and concern that this crisis has occurred, no patience for those who have transgressed, but also an underlying commitment to the trade and the importance to the farms and associated industries.

Current estimates are that the trade is running at $20 to $40 a head premium to the market, but the unknown and unsettling factor is what that extra stock would do if it came onto the market in a short space of time. If we learned anything from the knee-jerk reactions when the trade was banned in 2011, it was that the effect of the ban went far further and deeper and lasted far longer than anyone had imagined. It left animals on properties longer than they should have been. They grew too large and were prohibited from the trade after the ban was lifted. We offended our trading partners and they radically reduced their quotas. The designated livestock was pushed onto domestic markets and depressed the domestic markets, and all producers suffered. It was a rolled gold rolling disaster.

We should not underestimate the knock-on effect to associated industries in country towns. Take Johnson's, for instance. Johnson's is a stockfeed manufacturer at Kapunda and has recently installed $18 million worth of pelleting equipment primarily for the trade. Denis Johnson said:

Johnsons purchase over 100,000 tonnes of grain, green screenings, hay, straw and damaged hay from farmers throughout the Mid North, Barossa, Yorke Peninsula, Eyre Peninsula, Murraylands and South East of the state providing an important source of income to farming operations. This income flows back into local communities.

Farmers buy machinery from local dealerships, have their trucks repaired by the local mechanic, purchase on-farm supplies from their local rural merchandiser. They use the local doctor, hairdresser, supermarkets, kindergartens, schools and hospitals—the list goes on to include all business and services with whom farming families have dealings.

Without this money spent in rural towns, these services are lost.

As someone who spent the best part of the last 35 years raising and caring for livestock, I am, like the member for Forrest, a proud farmer. I am one of the first to condemn mishandling of stock and one of the first to say that whenever our livestock are heading off farm, they simply must be treated with humanity, care and concern. But there are two underlying premises in the Live Sheep Long Haul Export Prohibition Bill 2018 that is before us. One is the premise that the industry can be slowly turned off, rather than ceasing immediately and, thus, saleyard impacts avoided. This simply flies in the face of reality. Livestock transporters are required to invest in their ships and infrastructure, and that requirement is ramping up quickly as a result of the latest regulations, and rightly so. But who would invest millions of dollars in their business if they were given a closure date at the same time? There is a very strong case that, unless the operators are given a long-term future, they will not invest and they will withdraw, with the fall-out that would cause.

The second premise is that Australian sales will not suffer because our markets will switch product—to chilled and frozen product—rather than switch suppliers. The member for O'Connor provided some figures on this matter only a few weeks ago in this place, and they bear reiteration. Australia provides less than 10 per cent of the world's live sheep trade—1.6 to 1.8 million tonnes per annum out of a total trade of 10 million tonnes. The trade is growing, and global food services company GIRA is forecasting 2½ per cent growth over the next four years.

The member for O'Connor reminded us that Saudi Arabia used to be a major customer and took the bulk of our live sheep from Australia. They have chosen not to comply with ESCAS—that is their choice—and have not converted to other product. They have simply found other suppliers. When our trade with Bahrain became unprofitable and ceased, the beneficiaries were certainly not our chilled and frozen meat suppliers. In fact, the crash in our chilled meat supplies to the market underlines the value and impact of trade relations across the board. Our chilled meat trade with Bahrain has shrunk from 12,000 tonnes per annum to 7,500 tonnes. That's because we're out of the game. All kinds of figures abound that support this premise, and I urge a commitment to continuing the trade.

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