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ALEC visits Middle East to keep ties strong
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.
Mr Galvin said it was excellent to be back in the region after a number of years to discuss Australia’s livestock trade.
“It is very humbling to see that much of Australia’s identity and positive reputation in countries such as Jordan and Kuwait is tied to Australia’s livestock trade. Over many decades we have given these countries food security. They are immensely grateful for this and have demonstrated a very strong desire for the trade to continue for many years to come.”
“Australia’s livestock trade helps ensure they can service all segments of their consumer markets alongside their significant investment in chilled and frozen meat from Australia.”
“I have been making a very strong point of thanking these customers for being excellent trading partners and providing market access for Australian livestock farmers. I have also thanked them for their willingness to introduce Australian animal welfare standards into their supply chains over many years, something which took them a lot of perseverance and significant investment. We have seen this work also benefit animals from other suppliers in Africa and Europe through these improved animal welfare standards.”
Mr Harvey-Sutton said that it was also quite exciting that the industry could be on the cusp of opening a new sheep market in the region in Morocco.
“As the final stages of the protocol negotiations conclude, Australian exporters will soon also be able to send sheep to Morocco, building market access options in the region. When you couple this with the significant re-entry of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia after years of not importing Australian sheep, it shows a real opportunity for growth of the livestock trade in the region.”
“We look forward to reporting back our observations to the Australian Government when we return, so they can better understand the reality of how these markets work and the important role the Australian livestock industry plays in our strong diplomatic relationships in the region.”
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