We are always told that the two industries don't compete but at the moment, the Australian meat trade is currently competing very strongly with the live ex trade Yep, they've temporarily stopped putting some of the Northern cattle on boats and are trucking them 1000s of km south instead. One hopes that the Land Transport standards are being followed (i.e. maximum of 48h off water for the period including yarding, loading and transport with a spell of 36 hours) but somehow, we suspect not! Hard to know which is the worst welfare option for the northern cattle but it is a clear cut and dried answer for any southern cattle: absolutely unacceptable to be trucking winter-acclimatised cattle (from a very cold winter), 1000s and 1000s of land km to the tropical north and THEN going on a boat to an uncertain slaughter. Any such trade would make an absolute mockery of the oft-repeated phrase that producers care for the welfare of their animals.
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