Well, it was always a longshot.
Otway has sold the consigment to someone else....and the new owners dont want VALE onboard...what a surprise. So....yep, will all be up to those independent shipboard vets now....oh and the government (because they are so independent). And bad luck VALE re the wasted flight bookings! Perhaps ALEC would like to contribute....! BUT...the real issue is....the animals...oh thats ok, they are merely a saleable commodity.
6 Comments
Dear Mr Schmidt,
In September 2015, you made an invitation to VALE: "At any time that VALE would like professional and accurate data regarding any of our voyages, they simply have to ask. Alan Schmidt - Managing Director Otway Livestock Exports." In light of that offer, VALE would like to ask that one of our experienced representatives be allowed to perform a veterinary inspection of the loaded Ocean Outback. If this is not possible, could you please let us know: a) if any washdowns of the cattle decks have been undertaken? b) are ammonia concentrations being monitored? c) what is happening with carcasses? We would contact you directly but an email address and phone contact have not been provided to us. Yours sincerely VALE So the engines cant be repaired on the Ocean Outback and it is now at least 9-10 days onboard for all those animals. Wellard, in their statements have assured everyone of the excellent animal welfare......food, ventilation etc.....but how about the deck cleaning? Washing out the cattle is not possible in port.....and it is unlikely that the stricken vessel will have been taken out to sea to do a washdown when repairs the priority.
So.....lets just think about it.....plenty of warm days in the last week, plenty of faeces.....these cattle must be knee deep in slurry. Not to mention the ammonia concentrations.....are they being monitored? For both animal and human health? And....what now? Proceed on one engine..to where? What an absolute disaster.....AGAIN. Well its a constant theme really.....Moore and colleagues might not have assessed mechanical failures (or rough seas) to be risk factors for cattle mortality....but yet again we have a live ex mechanical issue.
Yep....Ocean Outback broken down....last Tues 29th Dec...and unless it has moved since midnight, it is still in Henderson shipyards....LOADED. So that will be a few days for loading plus a week sitting going nowhere....so likely 9-10 days onboard already for sheep and cattle destined for Israel BEFORE they even get to sail. So, if they sail.....one terrible trip. If they don't, one terrible biosecurity issue for Australian livestock. What a fantastic industry this really is. Not content with strongly supporting the live export trade despite a degree in veterinary science, our veterinarian Senator is now adding his sage counsel to the climate change debate.
Apparently Australia really doesnt have to do anything…..we can just leave it up to the other countries to sort….when all said and done, it could just be "sun spots". Ho hum…..if he was in the lower house, we'd not be thinking he was about to get the Foreign Affairs portfolio soon….though, with this attitude he could be a good candidate for Minister of the Environment. Anyhow, its very important that Senator Back does not acknowledge human-induced climate change….cos its definitely not in the best interests of the planet (or its animals) to promote live ex over boxed meat. Well finally the investigation into High Mortality Voyage 51 (Jan 2014!) on the Ocean Drover is released: verdict high mortality due to vessel breaking down. Yep, they ran out of food, had to take on new and different food (after competition led to increased mortalities on remaining rationed food) and that the sudden change in fodder resulted in ruminal acidosis in both sheep and cattle. What a debacle.
So, here we are again. The Girolando Express has finally left Port Phillip Bay where it has sat, loaded with cattle since Sunday 6th December because it broke down. .....So add on an extra 8 days to the scheduled 16 days. Has DAFF put an AAV onboard...for a voyage over 10 days initially that will now be over 26 days....if those repairs hold up? Or will this be the next high mortality voyage? Astounding.....the greyhound industry itself requested the Minister ban live export of greyhounds...but Joyce refused. One thing for sure is that Minister Joyce doesnt give a damn about animals or animal welfare....and if he doesnt heed industry warnings about welfare issues, then who exactly is he listening too? Oh thats right ...no-one....he is all wise and all omnipotent.
At the recent live-ex conference, it was pointed out that the business case for importing and feeding cattle in Indonesia was weakening. Cost of exporting cattle has increased 4-5x in the last 8 years and it is much cheaper to buy boxed meat. In fact a kilogram of meat from live export costs 5x as much as a kilogram of boxed meat.....but always remember we only do it to provide protein for the poor Indonesians.......!
Apparently, it doesnt take a rocket scientist to work out which trade will endure. Likewise, VALE would maintain it doesnt take a rocket scientist to work out which one would be better for both cattle and Indonesia's poor! So this morning in Fremantle, we had the Maysora, the Ocean Ute and some other LE ship in at Victoria Quay. This afternoon Ocean Ute loaded and gone, replaced by Lincoln Express, Maysora still in and the other ship still at Victoria Quay....at least it cant load from there whatever it is.
How many animals do we actually have that we can be loading at least 2 boats at a time, seemingly continuously? One could be excused for thinking that Temple Grandin has given the entire Australian live export industry the thumbs up. If one reads past the headline this is clearly not the case.
Temple Grandin was taken around 2 feedlots and 2 abattoirs in Indonesia and 2 cattle stations in Australia. Both the abattoirs used pre-slaughter stunning but this is not mandatory for all cattle exported from Australia. Her comments were that non-stun slaughter may be humane but far greater sensitivity in handling was required. There is no evidence that this is in fact the case for the unfortunate animals which suffer this fate either in Indonesia or elsewhere. Perhaps at this point we should recall that without the exposure of the sadistic cruelty endemic in Indonesian abattoirs by Animals Australia and Four Corners in 2011 there would STILL be no pre-slaughter stunning in Indonesia ("an aspirational goal" according to Caple et al in the MLA 2010 report). Everyone was in fact quite happy with the status quo until the future of their sordid industry was under threat. Temple mentioned heat stress as a welfare issue but said she saw no evidence in her inspections. That comes us no surprise as the problem is unlikely to be encountered in Bos indicus cattle in a feedlot in Indonesia. If she had been taken on a voyage from a Southern Australian port to the Middle East in August with a boatload of Bos taurus, she might have seen something a little more confronting. Of course the industry will never allow independent observers on their high risk voyages or destinations. Temple herself acknowledged that she was only going to see good things as she was a guest of the industry. Even so she was clearly not happy with concrete feedlots and and deep muck in the pens. So even the best feedlots in Indonesia are somewhat less than perfect. Wouldn't want to know what the worst ones are like..... Despite the tiny number and hopelessly biased sample of her inspections the conclusion is duly made that Temple Grandin thinks welfare in the totality of live export is is OK. Breathtaking. Those of us at VALE live in hope that one day the phone will ring and the caller will be Mr Balzarini offering us a free trip to Turkey from Portland in July with a few thousand fat hairy Herefords. |
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