Yabby,
That is quite a price differential. No farmer should be expected to subsidise new processing plants by accepting lower prices than are available elsewhere. If the prospects for further Australian processing are as rosy as some declare, then when built they will absorb those animals destined for the Live export trade. If the price is right.
If animal rights groups wish to subsidise the price differential between what processors and exporters offer then that's OK with me.

I see the thread ended up on Live exports after all.

Very Funny Yabby- I will amuse myself with you in the mean time. Tell me something Yabbs. Do you think the represenative of the Federal Ministers office would tell porkies to a bunch of city slicker lawyers?
According to Anne McDonald Peters Advisor who flew up for a meeting not so long ago it was twenty bucks a head- not forty. Or do you think Anne just got it wrong because she probably would not really know Yabby much less care.
Ok lets work on your figures shall we. Forty extra pluss the transport and shipping costs they are throwing in.

Lets say then for argument sake you were a abattoir owner and a importer of live animals in ME shall we?
You would have to secure plenty of retail shops and make a fair bit back from value adding wouldnt you say Yabby. Maybe even export some Halal Meat.

Tell Me Yabby do you have any idea what sort of profit the ME abattoir owners run at?
.
Do you not think that Australias meat is very popular with its clean green image in ME Yabby? Would you agree that many of these ME plant operators are a pretty shrewd lot. Do you not think for one moment they would like to get involved with Aussie farms and Farmers?
Dont you see that Aussie farmers SHLOULD be given the right to meet these people buying their! animals for talks and vise visa.
Cant you see the Government dont want that along with the shipping agent.
No way they want the farmers to pick up on the proffits they make with their sleazy trade dollar deals. So why in the hell dont we yet have a national accreditation for Halal In Australia Huh. Why is that do you reckon.?
I am interested in your reply on this as it will give me a better understanding if you really understand whats behind all this.
I am talking politics here more than animal welfare on this particular post/

Rojo
Yes it did end up on live exports. Are you There Mr Rudd?
Rojo I think your idea of the animal welfare groups putting into the farmers to make up the difference is fantasic. You got my vote.
When the good public give to Animal Welfare groups its to the animals they give and not for people to become fund raisers keeping themselves in cushy jobs. Indeed we could open more plants straight away.

I will ask Yabby and yourself what you think of the idea of asking Peter Costello to make it a law that these funds must go to the animals.
IE The farmers for improving standards. ie The Farmers who choose not to send their animals to an agent that deals in live exports. Ie To Put in the improvements to the piggerys that the ingtensive farms say they cant afford. To have at each Council Of Australia storgae for hay and water to be supplied to the farmers- Simply by them pcking it up when they need it in times as dry as now.
If all the groups give the money to go towards building new plants and the farmers supply some land we are on our way. Personally I would like to shout some farmers a trip to meet with ME live importers. They would be most welcome.
OK What do you both think about writing to Peter Costello/ The public would mostly be onside. I know because I know most people really want to help the animals but dont know what to do.
By the way we DONT pay ourselves and we pay heaps of costs in case your asking.;

Rojo, you are quite correct, there is a huge price difference!
Given that most of these animals now travel on pretty modern
ships and are slaughtered in abattoirs in the ME, farmers
have a pretty good case to defend their livelyhoods!

Wendy, I don't rely on some girl in Canberra for my information.
Mine comes directly from WA farmers, from saleyards here etc.

In Canberra they are all about averages etc. Well the
evidence is clear, WA mutton prices are a long way behind
ES prices (thats an official WA Govt report). If you pulled
the plug on the live trade, well we saw recently what happened
when supply exceeded demand. Farmers were taken to the cleaners!

Wendy, you can dream up all the conspiracy theories that you want.
Fact is, when farmers have to choose between 15-20$ or 60$,
in the middle of a drought, when they have livestock and families
to feed, I rely on the plain as day evidenced numbers, not
the rhetoric. Dream on, but reality does not go away, when
you close your eyes and wish it would

Belly
Of course the National Party should change their name top minors party.
Good grief Vaile and Downer had little else to show as exports lets face it.
I tell you now Rudds not the answer. Too cocky to the point of being imature and thats fatal in politics.
Howards knows Aussies hate someone taking something for granted. You all talk of nowhere to send animals in Australia to be slaughtered and them dying of thirst in the drought.
No wonder why this country is going backwards.
For a start if you know there is a good chance of that happening then DONT breed so many.
Second get off your bums and start talking to some of the people DIRECT overseas. Put some land up as share holders if they put in the funds for infatructure and provide halal slaughter trainers.

Try saying hey! we are not sending em live anymore doods. If u what em come over HERE and kill em because we want some of that value adding dollars.!
Yabby I note you declined to answer the questions.

Dont care if its a million bucks a head Australia surley is not so desperate it has to live of blood money from a VILE trade.

Tell you what. I will bring AFIC leaders M Government Reps and Reps from ME if you round some farmers up.
Lets cut out the greedy little ship agents.
Yabby Peter McGauran might just be slightly better informed than you.
Not to mention AFIC.

I see its as I suspected you dont have a clue what plant owners in ME are making. You just read the lies put out by Livecourpe MLA the Government and the shipping agents.

I can actually pick which web page your reading from most of the time.
Then you try to change it around to make it look like you are very informed.

I beleive you do that thinking you will gain attention from neighours and others.
It does but not in the way you think. Beleive me I know.

Thats the problem Wendy, you don't know :)

You can come up with all the theories, all the
guesswork, at the end of the day WA farmers are
overwhelmingly in support of the livetrade,
as its saved their bacon so many times. Thats
the reality.

Now if you or anyone else can come up with
an alternative, so that farmers arn't robbed
blindly for their livestock by local processors,
when supply exceeds demand, stop talking and
show it with $. Then farmers will listen, the
rest is dreaming.

As we can show, its not a vile trade, but you
don't want to hear about that of course.

When the mutton indicator prices dropped to
50-60c a kg or 10-12$ for a 20kg carcass, whilst
live shippers were paying 60 bucks, is well documented.
Now you tell me thats all not true, because of
some woman in Canberra. Hehe.