Its just over a month since veterinarian and industry scion Dr Ross Ainsworth publically espoused the animal welfare that ESCAS has achieved in Vietnam.
Yet the exporters themselves have blown the whistle on the real situation in Vietnam: animals escaping the accredited supply chain and suffering brutal practices including unsuccessful bludgeoning and being "flooded" (definition: cattle having water forced down by hose to increase rumen fill and saleable weight before slaughter). So gangbusters has turned to mythbusters.....and one would be forgiven for surmising that some revealing independent footage is about to be aired.
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Whilst, Dr Bidda Jones, chief scientist of RSPCA, appropriately criticises the eroding of ESCAS investigation transparency, Ms Penfold of ALEC also doesnt hold back. She, like anyone concerned with monitoring ESCAS, stated recently that the time the Dept of Ag (DA) takes to investigate non-compliance is unacceptable.
Must be hard for the DA being taken to task by ALEC when they bend over backwards to accommodate the live-ex trade and its non-compliance.... even removing its transparency to hinder independent scientific scrutiny by groups such as RSPCA and VALE. [Note: VALE would argue it also takes too long to investigate high mortality voyages and that the detail in the high mortality voyage reports is also steadily being eroded over time]. "It is also imperative to understand the important role live export plays in globally improving animal welfare."Pity our animals dont get a welfare dollar for every time the live ex industry tells us they are improving animal welfare overseas. If that really was the case, Indonesia 2011 wouldnt have happened (after 20 years of presence in Indonesia), Egypt 2012 wouldnt have happened (despite closed live ex facilities to avoid the infamous Bassatin abattoir, which still operates for local cattle) and ESCAS itself wouldnt have been necessary because 30 years of industry involvement should have meant high standards in destination countries..
Time to face the logic here - we dont and cant ever impose Australian standards on other countries that dont have their own laws to protect animals. Even if we improve things a bit for our own, it is farcical to think we impact on a country's overall animal welfare status....and lets face it, we cant even influence the fate of our own citizens in one of those destination countries. AACo's Darwin abattoir is officially open. Whilst this abattoir has never been considered an alternative to the live export trade, it is truly commendable, that against all odds (and seemingly only half-hearted pastoralist support), AACo have got this abattoir up and running to serve northern producers. This should boost the chilled meat export trade in addition to providing producers an option for their cattle when they are not suitable for live export. Handy backstop or for whenever the trade ceases too.....? The Qld live export industry is keen to do away with veterinary pregnancy testing. ACV president Dr Enoch Bergman elegantly explained why veterinarian pregnancy testing is essential to the live export industry. VALE couldn't agree more. There are enough areas of welfare concern and political ramifications in this industry without a few scantily-trained lay operators certifying our cattle…just so that the producers can perhaps save a few more dollars. Lets never forget that this is all about the dollars……ie maximum dollars regardless of animal welfare ramifications. Of course the question has to be asked: "Why would producers think that cattle veterinarians would support the live ex trade when they want to remove this "bread and butter" business for country veterinarians, the same bread and butter business that enables them to survive and provide livestock services to those same producers. Bizarre.....but then....who cares about those that lose out from the live ex trade (abattoirs and their workers? vets? local businesses that lose out when both go?.). According to Dr Ross Ainsworth, Cambodia is set to be a perfect destination for our live export trade. Dr Ainsworth is a former CEO of Northern Territory Livestock Exporters Association so, not surprisingly, his view of northern live export is fairly rosy. Whilst Dr Ainsworth is confident that Cambodia is a perfect destination……the fact that cattle can travel along “grey routes” should be a cause of concern for anyone who follows the success of ESCAS. Endless leakage from the supply chain issues in the foreesable future? Loads of unnecessary cattle transport to and from Vietnam? And, for what it is worth, a VALE member who has done veterinary work in Cambodia provided us with this link as they have seen firsthand the animal health and welfare problems in this country - needless to say, they didnt share Dr Ainsworth's optimism. Apparently, live export provides the "greenest" protein to feed millions of families in the world. Hard to know what exactly is green about the live export industry:
feedlotting? using palm oil to cheaply fatten cattle in the Indonesian feedlots? inefficiently shipping live animals not carcases? The report also tells us that the Ag Departments maths are none too good....figures dont always add up in tables (Try Table C3) and, regardless, are discrepant with the figures on the Department's own website. No matter how they massage the figures, 17/23 completed reports/complaints on ESCAS non-compliance had adverse animal welfare outcomes (74%) and 16/23 (70%) of these reports were submitted by independent parties.
Last year VALE asked how Australia was going to fill its orders for the rapidly expanding trade....and now we have our answer. And it certainly isnt one that is good for animal welfare. With northern suppliers unable to meet demand, we are now trucking Bos taurus cattle from below the 26th parallel from Victoria and South Australia to Darwin, approximately 3000 plus km away in the heat of a southern mid-summer and the heat and humidity of a northern wet season.
So, yes it makes economic sense Mr Howie but its completely unethical. And how exactly are you doing it? Cattle can only be held off water for a maximum of 48h. These trips alone take at least 48h. Oh and yes thats right, the live export market is a niche market that doesnt compete with the domestic market....at least, thats what we've always been told! Wellard have commented that penalties too soft for ESCAS breaches. So, if the exporters support stronger penalties, surely the government must take notice and finally act.
The recent court case over the multiple breaches of the law that occurred on the Hereford Express (High Mortality Voyage 29) exposed that there is no government will to prosecute any live export breaches, even very serious breaches (ie mortalities on the vet report altered by the exporter, more sheep unloaded than loaded despite deaths, no stockman on board etc). Why dont they prosecute? They dont have to. |
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