Celivia, there is lots in the press about live exports, but its
mainly in the WA rural press, as thats where most of the sheep
live trade originates from. The Countryman has lots of stories,
including letters from Peta nutcases etc, but they only have
a pay online version. Their editor, Cameron
Morse, actually just did a trip on one of the boats to check things
out for himself and wrote a huge report, over a number of weeks.
Perhaps you could email him and be really nice and he might send
you a free copy of it :)

Interesting that Wendy thinks that the live sheep trade makes
meat too expensive for some locals. Farmers here receive about
50-60$ per head from the live sheep trade, or just over 2 bucks
a kilo carcass weight. From the local meatworks on today's price
they receive about 1.10 a kg carcass weight. I wonder what Wendy
actually understands about farming, if she thinks that farmers don't
have lots of costs and can run farms when they receive 1.10 a kg
for meat. What do cities provide for $1.10? I note thats carcass
weight, not live weight. On a live weight basis, sheep sent to
meatworks here are worth about 500$ a tonne, about the price of
fertiliser.

The footage used on most of the animal activist websites is extremely old and distorted. Richard Carleton got sucked in and
rehashed alot of it. Yes there used to be some cowboy operators,
as there can be in any industry. After the Cormo Express incident,
new laws were brought in which tightened up the whole trade. As
a result, old boats are being or have been scrapped, new modern
vessels have been and are being built, there have been huge
changes. To deny that all this has been happening suits the cause
of those with a bee in their bonnet about this, but then they don't want us to eat meat or use leather either. Fact is we all die
eventually, even humans get chewed up by the worms, like it or not.

Yo Yabby

Lets try to get something positive out of these posts instead of being at logger heads.

You said you were along with other WA Farmers looking for sensible alternatives.

If you are serious consider the possibilty of becoming a person who not only supplies stock to the market but is a exporter as well.

All we are doing is bringing your overeas buyers to you here in Australia.
You are still selling your sheep to the same people Yabby except they are coming to you direct.[ no middle man]

There will be a lot of money in Halal accredited farms as well.

No I am not asking you to sell your farm or anybody else to the muslims or anybody.

Also we dont just work with Muslim people but world wide.

There is not too much oportunitys for me to explain it all on this post but it goes something like this.

We arrange for people to fly over to meet with you at your farm.

We do not attend unless YOU want us to.

If you find you have something in common that you can work a co joint deal then good luck to you.

We then arrange the closest abattoir [at your advise and local knowledge] If theres no we deal with that.

We arrange your Halal Accreditation and export licences at nO cost to you.

You are then a farmer producer exporter with a sure chain of supply.

That more than makes up for your 5 dollar to 20 dollar and if you insist 40 dollar difference per sheep.

You get cheap overseas travel and there is 600 million dollars available through the federal Government to create oportunitys in regional ares.

Couldnt you and your mates do with some of that!

Many people dont realise that farmers are the backbone of this country and you get it hard.

The National Party are traitors to the farmers flooding the country with cheap imports.

At least look at it surley it cant hurt eh?

Yabby

Wendy, thanks for your post. I am sure that you mean well, but
the problem here is not about 10'000 sheep, or 100'000 sheep,
but about 7 million sheep!

Let me explain in a few words why: Lamb exports from
WA used to be a Govt monopoly, until a few years ago.
Consequently no serious investment was made in mutton/lamb
processing, as they go hand in hand. The previous Govt
finally changed that, deregulated the market and facilitated
the building of one large, efficient mutton processor operation
in the State.

They forgot to facilitate a competitor for him, so that one large
operation is having a field day, without real competition.
Subsequently prices for sheep in WA are consistantly well below
Eastern States prices, by a large amount. I have yet to see
that one operation pay a cent more then it has to. The only
salvation for farmers is the live trade, which offers an alternate
market for large volumes of sheep at some kind of a realistic
price.

I know of an ES processor, who tried to buy sheep here at sales and
have them slaughtered locally. As soon as they affected local
prices upwards in the saleyards, they were told that there was
no more killing space available, sorry.

The present Govt does not seem to care much about agriculture.
If they did, they would facilitate the building of another couple
of efficient plants. It does not require subsidies, just some
help in getting through the red tape involved in building a new greenfields plant, which is super efficient, using the latest
technology.

To cut it short, farmers in WA are not unreasonable in wanting
prices similar to the prices that Eastern States farmers obtain
for their livestock. That is a long way from the case right now
and the only people doing anything like providing those sorts
of prices for farmers here, are the live trade. No wonder they
have huge support in WA.

Why don't your Malaysian friends come over here and build an
efficient plant? We have some of the world's cheapest sheep here

Thanks to Celivia, Yabby and Wendy for very interesting posts. And for not trading insults.

I am finding everything you have to say very informative. Personally, I would love to see an end to live trade - even though it has been cleaned up, animals caged for long periods and transported do suffer emotionally even if their basic physical requirements are met.

Please keep up the debate - you might just find some solutions.

Regards to all

Yabby.

I am listening.

Celiva kill to have you involved in this project or PALE

Scout as well.

Yabby

Happy to send people to look, talk to you and your mates.

I need some info.

The areas and where the nearest plants are?

Who would be interested in a co joint venture? How big are the farms?

We will do the Halal Accreditations and export licences together with u so u become an producer exporter as well[only if u want]

Where to re open plants?

Short story.> A bloke tried to buy a pig plant. Had most of it cash.

Asked Government for $5000.00 grants loan.

The Government said >no funds available.

Three weeks later they gave $40.00 Million to Nippon for the same ! plant.

Probably no surprise to you.

Government likes overseas investment, lets give them some, with farmers as grass roots partners.

You could be the first in WA . Hopefully later be an agent for this project and make heaps.

That will help me to help the animals.

Think u have a problem with PETA ? Animals Australia ? Animal Liberation? Katrina Sharmann?. Who means well [The author of this post]u should try being in my shoes.!

None of them have a god dam clue about stock and they wont except help.

I am know as the ANIMAL KILLER and black listed thanks to Animals Australia not only Australia wide but world wide.

They just dont get it that we must support FARMERS and slaughter here to improve Animal Welfare.

Fight for better prices for Farmers and SUPPORT farmers. Dumb and fund raisers]

When I try to contact farmers they are so uptight by the damage done they tell me to POQ.

Dont blame them.

We are also interested in other projects and some of these guys are real good at finding water with the funds to drill.

We want halal vegetables, bush tucker, and non animal tested aboriginal cosmetics.
please email me through this link.

www.halakindmeats.com

My job is to listen to you and your mates and do it your way.

Thanks Yabby

Katrina

Yes Peter arranged the first enquiry.

Sadly however well intended there was a condition put on it that it was ONLY presented from a vegetarian groups point of view.

There was your first mistake.

That gives the Government and others plenty of room to play politics and use the media to discreit all claims by such groups to the public calling us ALL extream.

We support FREE RANGE FARMERS and re opening of abattoirs so the animals are not on the truck for hours or days.

So tell me katrina whats your plan?


Animal Liberation should be supporting this FREE RANGE movement but they dont.

OK Then whats your! plan Katrina?, because telling everyone not to eat meat doesnt cut it for the animals.


By protesting about people eating meat you are destroying the chance to get the public on side to make sure battery hens and intensive farms are wipped out and put back to FREE RANGE.

You cant tell people not to eat meat Katrina .

Cant you see that for God Sake?

You need to support FREE RANGE FARMS

Ladies and Gentleman if you love animals support Free Range Farmers
and start your own group or just write direct to the Govenment.

All many groups are about is fund raising to keep themselves in paid positions.

Poor Animals.

This does not apply to voiceless who prefer to give rather than take however sadly they are being misled working with a group that support PETA who ARE extream.

This is not America Katrina and we need to support farmers who are Free Ranging and Re open Abattoirs HERE.

Brian and Ondine went on TV saying they were main stream

Then refuse to work with PALE HKM who are the only ones supporting and trying to help the farmers improve animal welfare.

All Animal Liberation and Animals Australia are doing is a lot of damage to animal welfare by getting every farmer off side with animal welfare groups.

Please re think this for the sake of the animals.

Whos playing politics