Live sheep export

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On 1 July 2024, the Federal Government…

Live sheep export

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Media release: Live sheep export unfixable, unnecessary, unacceptable – and now, soon to be unlawful

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RSPCA Knowledgebase Report Cruelty Donate

Live sheep export

On 1 July 2024, the Federal Government legislated an end date to live sheep export.

This means that this cruel and unfixable trade will end by 1 May 2028.

It provides a definitive end date and a clear indication to those in the trade and throughout the supply chain that they need to prepare over the coming years to transition away from reliance on the live sheep export industry. A $107 million transition package has been made available by the Federal Government.

But 2028 is a long way away – and a lot can happen between now and then.

Live sheep export has cumulative and inherent animal welfare issues. It could not be fixed by better regulation – Australia's dark history of live sheep export atrocities has proven this.

The decision to end the trade is firmly backed by science and evidence and by the Australian community.

It means a better future – for animals and for the community. Australian sheep are better off at home – and as a country and a society, we can and will do better than live sheep export.

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The science

The animal welfare issues are cumulative and inherent to the live sheep export trade.
Contemporary animal welfare science and recent analysis of animal welfare conditions onboard live export vessels demonstrate that live sheep export by sea causes extreme suffering for sheep. Risks include starvation, ship motion, ammonia exposure, heat stress, stocking density, unhygienic environments from being confined to accumulating faeces throughout the journey, 24/7 engine noise and artificial lighting, scabby mouth and enteric and respiratory infections. For more information on the science behind the animal welfare issues in live export, see here. For sheep in particular, animal welfare science substantiates that long journeys are a significant stressor.

Data gathered by on-board Independent Observers from over 53 live sheep export journeys carrying 2.5 million sheep between 2018 and 2023 shows that in 80 per cent of those voyages sheep were reported as starving on board, and at least 60 per cent reported sheep suffering from heat stress. These issues have not, and cannot, be fixed.

Community support

71% of West Australians, including 72% in metro WA and 69% in rural and regional WA, support the Federal Government’s policy to phase out live sheep export (2023).
63% of West Australians would be more likely to vote for a candidate in the next federal election who supported a phase out of live sheep export (2023).
78% of Australians would support a phase out of live sheep export if affected farmers were provided with assistance to transition (2022). The Australian Government has allocated $139 million to support farmers and others in the supply chain to transition away from the trade.
Nearly 44,000 Australians signed a parliamentary petition in favour of a phase out of live sheep export – a robust two-step process where emails were verified, resulting in one of the largest parliamentary e-petitions in Australia’s history (2023).

What you can do

Write to your federal MP and Senators in support of maintaining the phase out legislation. There’s a long way to go until 2028 – so we need to remind parliamentarians that this was the right decision and one that was firmly backed by science and by the community. You can find MPs’ and Senators’ contact details here.
Write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper or call talkback radio in support of a phase out of live sheep export, pointing out that sheep are better off at home.
Share this page with friends and family or on social media – reminding the community that we can do #betterthanliveexport for Australia’s sheep.
Subscribe to the RSPCA Australia enews, so you’ll be the first to know when there’s something more you can do to help ensure Australian sheep have a better future.

Authorised by Richard Mussell, RSPCA Australia, 6 Napier Close, Deakin