By Natalee Kerr
Animal activists fighting to stop plans for an Inverleigh sheep dairy have angered Victoria’s peak farming body.
International animal rights group PETA submitted a petition with more than 10,000 signatures to the Surf Coast Shire last week urging council to reject plans for the dairy farm.
PETA labelled the farm proposal as “monstrous” and “cruel”, alleging the sheep would be subject to “intense suffering”.
But Victoria Farming Federation’s livestock president Leonard Vallance told the Indy the sheep would be “very well looked after”.
“The welfare and health standards across sheep dairy’s are extremely high and well adhered to,” he said.
“The animals are fit, happy and healthy – they give birth, and they milk and feed.
“I’d like them (PETA) to show me how a sheep dairy is cruel to the animal.”
The $9 million farm would house 6000 lactating ewes whose milk would mostly be processed into powdered products, according to planning documents.
The land is zoned for farming under Surf Coast Shire’s planning scheme but requires a permit for “intensive animal production”.
The proposal complies with Australian Animal Welfare Standards and Guidelines for sheep, the planning application reads.
Mr Vallance said the RSPCA, veterinarians and the state’s department of agriculture helped formulate the code of practices.
“The sheep would be under direct veterinary care at all times, and collars can be used on the sheep to monitor their health directly,” he said.
“What is there to complain about?”
If approved, the project would operate on the Murnong Farm, trading as Australian Sheep Dairy Company.
Mr Vallance said the project would benefit the community by creating a “huge” amount of jobs and supporting the“demand” for sheep milk products.
He said PETA’s petition captured the views of “only a minority” of the population.
“Vegans make up one to two per cent of the Australian population; the other 98 per cent have a clear desire to eat dairy products,” he said.
“The broader public appreciate and value this sort of product.”
