Herd of trouble: John and Jeanette Harris at the Moriac beef farm.
JOHN VAN KLAVEREN
AUSTRALIA’S ban on exporting cattle to Indonesia will impact the Geelong region’s beef industry, according to farmers.
Mt Moriac beef farmers John and Jeanette Harris said they feared damage to their business if the impasse continued.
“The northern cattle have got to go somewhere and the only place is here in the south,” Mr Harris said.
“The flow-on effect will be tremendous, not just for us but for everyone involved, like transport businesses. It will lead to lower prices.
“Prices now are where they were 15 years ago. It’s like trying to survive on the wages you made 15 years ago.
“We’ve only just recovered from the drought and now we’re hit with this.”
Federal Government announced the export ban last week after ABC television broadcast images of cruelty to Australian cattle in Indonesian abattoirs.
Farms in Geelong and the Western District comprise 25 per cent of Victoria’s $1.3 billion beef industry. The Harris’s farm runs 200 head of Angus cattle.
“To stop any industry in its tracks is devastating, especially without any consultation,” Mr Harris said.
“Northern cattle farms are in big trouble because this product can’t sit on the shelf.”
Mr Harris said the prospect of trying to survive the exports ban impact was “horrendous” so soon after the drought.
“It’s been a tough slog these past 10 years.
“The government has not thought this through. It’s a gut reaction to a television program.
“While we agree our animal welfare is important, blanket bans do not work.
“It’s taken years to develop this market and there are a lot of beef producers around the world looking for new markets and we’re vacating one.”
Liberal state Member for Western Victoria and former Victorian Farmers Federation president Simon Ramsay said prices for beef were already falling.
“As more export cattle flood the southern market, that impact will increase,” Mr Ramsay said.
“The problem is the blanket ban. It victimises abattoirs doing the right thing and won’t improve conditions in the non-accredited abattoirs.
“This decision will impact on our southern beef prices and have a flow-on effect to industries in the supply chain.
“Pressure should be brought to bear on the Indonesian government to improve standards.
“There’s a lot at stake here – government relations, animal welfare and a healthy industry.”
