if karma works, a few of those people are going to come back as export cattle to Indo[}:)]
Heard that we are also doubling our help to Indonesia from 4.5 to 9 billions does that sounds right?????
I heard some cattle farmers having a winge on JJJ the other day plus a whole range of other people that are affected.
One bloke was a sparki, he had spent $60000 on equipment and now his customer couldnt employ him for the job he was supposed to do. Now he cant pay his supplier. I guess the suplier could just take the stuff back but I guess thats not the point.
just my point... the money could be spent here to help ease the pain caused by Indonesia to OZ tax payers, instead of sending money just send meat that had been processed here by halal butchers!
Sending money helps the corrupt pollies of indo!
Exactly.
The whole ban was a typical Australian kneejerk reaction. I mean bloody hell, the footage wasn't even that disturbing at all. Sure, it could all be done a little cleaner and more humanely, but to ban all exports because of footage of an abattoir where cows were tripping over and hitting their heads and having their throats slit...get over it.
Don't blame the abattoir workers. Blame those who's job it is to ensure that these things don't occur.
And because the Indonesians are now "offended", they will be looking elsewhere for their cattle.
www.theaustralian.com.au/nocookies?a=A.flavipes
I'm sure they will now be sourcing cattle from countries with standards far lower than our own.
Nice one Julia, we just shut down an industry keeping northern Australia running.
BTW, one of the main reasons for live exports to Indo is due to the lack of refrigeration.
Typical.... government does nothing
Sounds like Indo needs all the help it can get???
How bout spending our billions in Australia
Yoko Ono Cites “Confessions of An Economic Hitman” In OMagazine (copy and paste)
Woaw must read it if Yoko recommend it!
It amazes me that the whole thing became a federal government issue. The whole **** fight belongs at the feet of the meat and livestock association. they make millions of farmers dollars to set up markets, connect buyers and sellers, ensure the trade is regulated and run well etc etc. Where the **** are they, why aren't the farmers setting fire to the offices of the MLA. And why hasn't there been ONE mention of the MLA and their failure to run the industry that they are paid to on this site? Oh ,of course, it's Julia Gillards fault isn't it. Bull**** it is!
This government is incompetent.
Bungling, blithering idiots.
I am embarrassed by their actions, and completely understand why Indonesia may be offended.
^^^ Logman they current Govt MADE it their issue.
what amazes me is that instead of investigating and finding a way to ensure that no more cattle go to the very few shonky abbatoirs, the Fed Govt immediately stopped all exports.
Kneejerk reaction that has backfired on them.
This is what you get when you have no clear election result and to get in they had to side with the Greens who have no idea, just all about opposing everything.
What, did they think the farmers could just take a multi million dollar hit (EACH!) as they have bank balances like Federal pollies?
Now their 'policy on the run' has failed much the same as all of Labor's other failures.
Total incompetence with no foresight
Sorry loggy, the path that was taken by the government is Julia Gillard's fault. You can blame my next-door neighbours dog if it makes you happy, or Tony, or Joe, or that other Joe (Ludwig). Buck stops with the PM. Responsibility.
I read that the footage was taken seven months prior to it being aired by people who went to take footage with the aim of shutting down the live export industry.
It was also pointed out how the people in the footage appeared to be smiling and almost clowning around for the cameras.
Not saying what I read I take to be true, but also not sure that saying lifting of the ban is triumph of pro-lobby groups over animal welfare.
Everyone has an agenda and I am sure uses whatever means they can get away with.
watched news tonight of some space cadet tipping cow blood over herself in protest to live export...
she looked like a meat eater
she tipped cow blood over herself
did the cows donate the blood...?
did the meat she eats suffer any less than their live exported cousins...?
one could cynically argue they atleast get a free holiday cruise....
if you eat meat you didn't kill yourself, you have no right to judge or comment
Wowsers... Julia's crew had nothing to do with it... it is all someone else fault. Here is a picture of a river in Egypt:
Some space cadet told me :
If you don't eat vegetables you grew yourself you have no right to judge
If you don't take herbal remedies you didn't concoct yourself you have no right to comment
If you don't have a child that died from a vaccination shot you have no right to speak out
If you don't stand for election to represent your community you have no right to criticise
I told the space cadet what a load of bollocks
Is interesting following this guys...
“I'm all for live animal export and happy that the ban has been lifted.”
I am a career cattle farmer – long term and have been involved in Live Export as a supplier and worked in the Aussie side of the Export industry. I fully support exporting to markets which have world recognized animal welfare standards and practices in place equal to our own and only those! Yes the total ban contained a knee jerk reaction and has been a disaster for Australian Agriculture. However it is not all B&W or easy...
“Is it really worth denying a whole very profitable, close and farmer sustaining industry for the sake of a couple of dodgy joints? Why not just specify that you will not supply those particular places?”
We have been exporting to buyers who supply approx 120 abattoirs in Indonesia [possibly more]. Post the 4 Corners episode, consultation within industry took place that came up with approx 50 abattoirs that were believed to use stunning and satisfied all welfare standards equal to ours. Then it dropped to 25 abattoirs that met our equivalent standards. Then as talks progressed it dropped to 7 definite and maybe 10 at most suitable abattoirs. This held a massive grey area and the minority was no longer a minority... We could have supplied the definite's and I wish we had that opportunity, however the scale of the problem at hand soon appeared much larger.
“I mean bloody hell, the footage wasn't even that disturbing at all.”
I found it blooding sickening and a bloody disgrace witnessing what I saw and that we had cattle going to those types of operations. Disturbing is an understatement! I have been a long time supporter and supplier of cattle to this Indo market and to think that our cattle had been treated like that enraged me! Any animal treated in such a way is shocking... Here is a quote from one of Australia's largest cattle producers [Heytesbury] supplying the Indo export market – “Profits are not an excuse for an animal to be treated that way," I totally agree as do many others.
“Would it be better if they just bought from another country and treated the animals the same way?” They have been importing Buffalo from India for quite sometime already. The first time I heard of it was approx 8 years ago. The Indonesian buyers have also been looking to Brazil and Africa for a number of years and have been deliberately reducing the number of Aussie cattle entering Indonesia since they imposed a 350kg live-weight ceiling for each suitable animal at the commencement of the export season in 2010. As of 2010 our live cattle exports to Indonesia have dropped 33%! They find a cheaper supplier, they will go there...
“I am sure that the cost of refrigerating most of an animal is cheaper than shipping the whole animal and feeding it onboard.”
We Aussies have some of the highest production and labour costs in the western world and this is also the case in Agriculture. They buy our cattle live and lighter in weight as it is much cheaper for them to ship them, grow them and finally process them there. This is why our live export trade exists. These countries can not afford and/or will not pay the substantially higher cost for our beef grown and processed here. Another issue is Halal slaughter. Tho we have Halal slaughtermen in near all Australian abattoirs, there are still the Islamic followers who will not accept stunning or us doing it here. This is a problem right now as they will not fully agree to stun in all Indo abattoirs that previously received our cattle. Actually some senior Indo Agriculture officials have said they will sign no guarantee. There is a push in some Islamic quarters to have reversible stunning [as against non-reversible stunning] – where the animal awakens after the knife cut/slash and is alive to bleed to death. For many purists, the animal must be alive as it bleeds! I wont go into that, tho will say – Thats F@@k'd!
“I am embarrassed by their actions, and completely understand why Indonesia may be offended.” Indonesia offended? When I was actively involved in the live export industry I remember another occasion when Indonesia refused to renew import permits at the 10th hour, for our cattle. It was a political stunt and designed to hurt our producers and bring down prices. They reversed it sometime later, but let the industry sweat, to show they had the upper hand. Some years later, as the export season was to commence in 2010, they dropped the 350kg live-weight bombshell on us, which suddenly made many 1000s of cattle ineligible due to being over weight for the "new" specs and if you could get them to take any slightly heavier cattle, the price paid was brought back considerably. Last winter - Many 10s of 1000s of cattle left WA's North for the eastern and Sth OZ markets at a financial loss to the station owner because of this. If it wasn't for high demand from the interstate buyers due to the great season they were having, many of our WA Station owners who were reliant on Indonesia would have been finished because of the 2010 export season! Indo bureaucracy does as it wants, when it wants and always has. They are in this as a business and for the money and at times with little care for us. Dont worry too much about offending. I dont!
“1. the MLA is the responsible authority......and they aren't. THEY jeopardized the live trade by not ensuring the animals were dealt with humanely.” I agree - The MLA and Live Corp have much responsibility to hold in this. Yes we farmers, well a number of us are trying to make them accountable right now. Including me personally. We fund them thru a compulsory levy. After 18 years we got to this stage. They had plenty of time to get the job done right, but they didn't! Ludwigs predecessor who knew of the Indonesian animal welfare issues 2 years ago and did nothing, also has a hell of a lot to answer to.
I am happy to hear the Export ban has been lifted on "APPROVED" facilities. Maybe some of the station owners can ease some of the loss they will make this season and the follow on affect it has to so many other Non Ag industries and business. This Indo situation is the last straw for me, my trust in their bureaucracy and their side of the export industry is gone. I have nil faith in the MLA or Live Corp and am not impressed by the previous Federal Ag minister and his staff. Not super impressed with the current one either, tho I would hate his job! So I wont be supplying cattle in the foreseeable future into Indonesia....
