Live export: RSPCA slammed for inciting ‘country vs city divide’ and ‘misconstruing’ Government data

The RSPCA has copped backlash for pushing “false arguments” about live exports and using Government-commissioned data which the organisation has previously been called out on for “sensationalising”. It comes after the animal rights group took out a full-page ad in The West Australian on Saturday, published as “an open letter to the people of Western Australia” and signed by RSPCA chair Lynne Bradshaw. “No amount of regulation could prevent thousands of sheep from the impact of transport stress, searing heat and stifling humidity, overcrowding, hunger and more,” Ms Bradshaw wrote. She referred to independent observer reports commissioned by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to monitor ventilation, feed and water, pen conditions, loading and discharge of all live export voyages from 2018 onwards. Ms Bradshaw said 80 per cent of these reports between April 2018 and May 2023 stated sheep were starving on board and at least 60 per cent said animals were suffering from heat stress. Australian Livestock Exporters’ Council CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton slammed the claims as “embellishments” and said it was a case of RSPCA continuing to “misrepresent true facts around the trade”. “The fact that the RSPCA has decided to spend thousands of dollars of donations to take out a one page ad, to try and perpetuate their false argument, speaks volumes about how that organisation conducts itself,” he told Countryman. Across all the reports, the leading cause of death of sheep onboard live export vessels was observed to be gastrointestinal issues, such as inanition (often caused by shy feeding) and enteritis. Sheep deaths never passed the notifiable mortality rate of one per cent, and independent observers identified no systemic issues aboard any vessel in the past five years. Last year, the sheep mortality rate onboard live export vessels was 0.17 per cent according to DAFF, down from 0.53 per cent in 2018. “You do not have those outcomes if animal welfare is not sound on the voyage,” Mr Harvey-Sutton said. “We’re the only country in the world that has standards in place, in our receiving markets, for animal welfare. “I think the RSPCA, if they did want to contribute positivity to animal welfare, should actually work with the industry, rather then constantly misrepresenting the true facts around the trade and behaving like an activist organisation.” Between 2022 and 2023 there were 12 independent observer reports on both sheep and mixed sheep and cattle voyages. Standards are ‘appropriate’ All those voyages were observed to meet “appropriate” feed and water standards. The only issues raised were related to four trips in which feed pellets were observed to have broken down into fines (fodder and dust) on some decks, which led to crew members regularly cleaning the feed troughs. The independent observers recorded no adverse impact to animal health as a result. On one voyage in 2022, an observer noted some animals “had difficulty” accessing feed and water troughs aboard the MV Al Messilah because of horn sizes, which went against livestock export standards. Two sheep lost body condition because of this and were moved into hospital pens to better access feed and water. These sheep regained condition and no other animals needed intervention. In 2023, two sheep died aboard the MV Al Kuwait after becoming stuck in a space around feed troughs, but the independent observer ruled the deaths were not a result from any “systemic failures”. Between 2022 and 2023, there were two cases of inadequate ventilation on live export sheep voyages. One was onboard the MV Maysora, in which ventilation “felt inadequate” in an area not approved to house livestock. Another was onboard the same vessel on a different voyage, in which observers noted a maximum wet bulb temperature higher than what was reported by the Australian Accredited Veterinarian. For both of these cases, the observers reported no heat stress among sheep or cattle. ‘Fear mongering’ claims slammed In the open letter, Ms Bradshaw wrote that “despite the fear mongering, there will still be sheep and sheep farmers in WA after 1 May 2028”. She said shearers would still be needed, truck drivers would still be in demand to transport sheep, and more jobs would be created by expanding onshore processing. This was despite concerns raised in the Independent Panel Report: Phase Out of Live Sheep Exports by Sea, which stated there could be a “substantial drop” in WA’s flock size if the transition was not handled with enough care and efficiency. Mr Harvey-Sutton said many were worried about the industry’s future, and Ms Bradshaw’s comments did not stack up in the face of a recent rally held in Perth. “If that’s the case, why were there thousands of people participating in that rally?” he said. “Do farmers actually feel that optimistic, or is this (RSPCA) sitting in an ivory tower, not wishing to help contribute positively to animal welfare? “And in fact, are they creating the city vs country divide?” Mr Harvey-Sutton previously accused the RSPCA of “sensationalising” an independent report into a 2022 voyage from Fremantle, which the organisation cited as evidence the sheep trade was “disaster-plagued and unfixable”.