The Australian Livestock Exporters Council (ALEC) has today paid tribute to David Warriner, one of the most influential figures in northern Australia’s pastoral industry, and a key contributor to the live cattle export industry. David sadly passed away last week.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said today that the Albanese Government had spent a staggering $2.4 million advertising the ban on exporting live sheep by sea. This represented 49% of all advertising by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry since 2022.

Calling the spend “absolutely galling”, ALEC CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton said it was a gross misuse of taxpayer funds and came at the expense of other important issues.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said today that the Australian Government’s Australian Animal Welfare Strategy (AAWS) cannot proceed while the live sheep ban remains in place as it was based on politics and not science.

President Trump has turned the global trade on its head in a matter of weeks with his global tariff agenda.

Sure, the Albanese government can look dimly on what President Trump does and make statements that this is “not the act of a friend.” However, in reality the Albanese Government is getting a taste of its own medicine as this is exactly how his government has treated our middle eastern trading partners with the ban on live sheep exports.

Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council CEO, Mark Harvey-Sutton said today that ALEC was once again proud to stand side by side with Keep the Sheep as they embarked on a convoy through Perth CBD to remind metro voters of the devastating live export ban and the damage it was already inflicting on rural communities.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council has cautioned candidates not to use live exports as a ‘bargaining chip’ should the looming Federal election result in a hung parliament and expressed doubt on where the Teals would stand on the issue.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council will host a delegation of 15 visitors from Morocco in Perth this week to discuss the opening of a new market for Australian livestock to Morocco.

In a response to the Government today, the Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council has formally declined to participate in the Government’s ‘co-design’ process to assist in implementing its Phase Out of Live Sheep Exports by Sea policy.

Read the full correspondence to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry below:

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said today that it was pleased with the signing of a new protocol paving the way for the export of Australian livestock to Morocco.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council has slammed the government’s new advertising campaign about the phase out of live sheep by sea as ‘wasteful and unnecessary’.

ALEC has today welcomed the Australian Government’s recognition of the contribution the live export industry makes to the improvement of animal welfare standards across the world.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said today that the Government’s call for someone to fill the Transition Advocate role to phase out the export of live sheep by sea was a poisoned chalice and would result in no good outcomes for exporters, farmers or the wider supply chain.

ALEC Chair David Galvin and CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton are in the Middle East this week to visit key markets and customers in the interest of keeping industry relationships with the region strong.

The visit takes in UAE, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Morocco and Jordan.

Results released today from a six year project examining community sentiment, indicating that public sentiment towards live exports is more positive than ever show the Government’s decision to ban live sheep exports by sea is unjustified.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council (ALEC) and Nutrien Ag Solutions are pleased to announce veterinarian, Dr Charles Vaughan, Live Export Manager at AAM Investment Group, as the winner of the 2024 Livestock Exporter Young Achiever of the Year award. Dr Vaughan was recognised for his outstanding leadership, industry knowledge and commitment to the sustainable future of livestock export.

Today Minister Julie Collins stated in a doorstop press conference that ALEC was one of the groups that pushed for additional funding as part of the Government’s ‘transition’ plan when it bans live sheep exports in 2028.

Tomorrow, the Hon Julie Collins will tour Western Australia and is likely to announce grants as part of the Albanese Government’s grossly inadequate $107 million transition package – of which only $60million is slated to be delivered on the ground over the next four years.

Despite an invitation, the Albanese Government failed to front the historic National Ag Rally in Canberra, attended by over 2000 people, in a move ALEC Chairman David Galvin described as “cowardly”.

Together with sponsor Nutrien Ag Solutions, the Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council is now seeking nominations for the Livestock Exporter Young Achiever of the Year award.

Responding to comments by Prime Minister Albanese in Perth on Monday, Australian Livestock Exporters CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton refuted statements that the Live Sheep Ban is “good policy”, and that the government won’t face voter backlash in the West.

Vale Luke Bowen

Alongside the Australian agricultural community, the Australian Livestock Exporters Council (ALEC) extends its deepest sympathies and condolences to the family of Luke Bowen.

The Australian Livestock Exporters Council (ALEC) has thanked recently appointed Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) Managing Director Michael Crowley and MLA Chair Alan Beckett for making Indonesia a priority during a visit this week to the crucial live export market partner.

ALEC regrettably advises that a small air freight consignment of breeder sheep to Jakarta experienced a mortality event of approximately 80 sheep on the evening of 17 August.

This was immediately reported to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry as the industry regulator.

A renowned red meat industry expert has told a packed auditorium at the LambEx convention that the Government’s ban on live exports was “the front door to a world of pain for farmers”.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said that the Parliament of New South Wales’ new inquiry into the Impact of the phase out of Australian live sheep exports by sea on NSW demonstrated that farmers across Australia were concerned by impacts to the industry and that it was not confined to Western Australia.

The Australian Livestock Exporters Council said today that the announcement of the new Minister for Agriculture was an opportunity for the incoming minister, Julie Collins MP to take fresh eyes to the agriculture portfolio and reset the relationship with the sector.

The Australian Livestock Exporters Council said today that 1 July 2024 will forever be marked as a black day for Australian agriculture. However, CEO Mark Harvey said it also marked the last day that governments could wilfully ignore facts and evidence and choose activism.

Mark Harvey-Sutton, CEO of the Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said today that the government’s refusal to hold an inquiry was a shameful attack on Western Australian farmers, truckies and the regional towns that support them.

Mark Harvey-Sutton, CEO of the Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said ALEC wanted to give credit where credit was due to independent Member for Curtin, Kate Chaney MP for voting against the Government’s ridiculous live sheep ban bill today in the House of Representatives and said she had set the benchmark for the Senate.

Mark Harvey-Sutton, CEO of the Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said the passage of the sheep ban bill through the House of Representatives was an act of ‘political bastardry’.

ALEC has today condemned the Labor controlled House of Representatives Agriculture committee for failing to do the right thing and for presiding over a sham inquiry.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has continued his government’s detachment and displayed a galling lack of empathy for the Western Australian agriculture industry during a radio interview yesterday on 6PR.

While not intending any disrespect to this committee’s members, and the time they are committing for this inquiry, Minister Watt committed to a Senate Inquiry with hearings in WA during a Senate Estimates hearing on 30 May, only to backflip less than a week later and assign the task to a House of Representative committee instead.

Today, ALEC CEO, Mark Harvey-Sutton celebrated the achievement of community group Keep the Sheep, on reaching over 44,000 signatures and growing and said it was further evidence that the community doesn’t support the Albanese Government’s ban on live sheep exports.

Speaking today as the Government announced a House of Representatives inquiry into the live sheep ban, ALEC CEO, Mark Harvey-Sutton declared the move was “outrageous” and was an attempt by the Albanese Government to jam through a policy that is universally unwanted across the agriculture industry.

Today, ALEC CEO, Mark Harvey-Sutton was pleased to ride in the cab of a truck as part of the rally organised by WA locals to protest the Albanese Government’s ban on live sheep and said that the mood on the ground in Western Australia reflected the dismay in the policy.

The Australian Livestock Exporters Council is today sending a very clear message to farmers in Western Australia as well as to the Albanese Government – We’re not going anywhere!

Today, ALEC CEO, Mark Harvey-Sutton denounced the Government’s announcement of the package for the phase out of live sheep by sea as a disgrace, saying it was clear that the Government was throwing out Australia’s vital agricultural industries in favour of activist ideologies, as well as a few votes.

Today at Beef Australia in Rockhampton, ALEC Chair, David Galvin welcomed members from the Indonesian and Vietnamese beef industry visiting Rockhampton for Beef Australia.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council said that while the last week had brought a brief reprieve for WA farmers with the announcement of financial support from the state government, the silence from Federal Minister, Senator Murray Watt was deafening.

Today at Beef Australia in Rockhampton where the Government’s Phase Out of Live Sheep by Sea panel member Sue Middleton, was speaking at the Cattle Australia breakfast, ALEC CEO said the comments about the Government’s live sheep ban policy were enlightening.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council applauded the efforts of WA Minister for Agriculture, Hon Jackie Jarvis MLC for her efforts in supporting the live export trade out of Western Australia by writing to her Federal counterpart, Minister Watt to call for a delay in the shipping moratorium start date.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council (ALEC) is aware that the Freedom of Information Commissioner has granted the RSPCA access to Independent Observer footage of a voyage that departed Fremantle in May 2018.

The Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council (ALEC) today warned Labor MPs speaking on live sheep exports were simply using tired and factually incorrect arguments in parliament when debating a private members motion put forward by the Member for Grey, Rowan Ramsay on Monday.