Mr WARREN - 2008-02-20
I recently heard that there has been an increase in the number of cattle exported from the Port of Darwin. Can you please tell me why this has occurred?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Goyder again for his question. As we all know, the live cattle export industry is vital to the pastoral industry of the Northern Territory and, in particular, the Top End. I am pleased to say that records are still being set. Last year, 283 000 head of cattle left the Port of Darwin for Indonesia and Malaysia and parts of South-East Asia. That is 55 000 head up on 2006. I am also pleased to say that, of that 283 000 that left the Port of Darwin, Northern Territory cattle numbered 247 000, which is up 24 000 on 2006. It is significant to see that our cattle are leaving our shores for Indonesia.
I was pleased to deliver an opening address recently to celebrate Siba shipping’s world record haulage with their ship, the Stella Deneb. It transported 22 184 head of cattle across to Indonesia. Those cattle were loaded in 34 hours, which equates to around about 11 cattle per minute. It is quite an extraordinary feat to have that done, and I acknowledge the skill of the organisations involved and the coordination that went to ensuring that these cattle were placed on the ship in good welfare: the export depots; the trucking companies that delivered the cattle to the port; my division of Primary Industry, obviously, for the work that they have undertaken; the veterinarians; the stockfeed companies who supply the feed for the trip; and, obviously, the stevedores on the wharf who helped load the cattle. That was supported by the state-of-the-art infrastructure that is on the wharf at the moment. As you can see, our government is supporting the industry by ensuring that infrastructure is up to date.
Our industry conforms with the highest regulatory standards that are required for animal welfare. I am pleased to say that we go through a number of processes to ensure that the conditioning of the animals is up to scratch when they leave the port. They are only short haulages - three to six days at the most - to get to their final port of call, with similar climate conditions, obviously, and we have an experienced stock handler on board. It just goes to show that our animal welfare issues are well addressed.
Indonesia is our main focus. However, I want to look at other areas of the market. We need alternative markets for our cattle. I am pleased to say that, next month, I will be travelling to Vietnam with members of my Division of Primary Industry, with the Northern Territory Cattlemen’s Association and the Northern Territory Livestock Exporters Association. We will be meeting with a number of people and the government while we are in Vietnam. This is a follow-up to the previous Chief Minister’s visit last year. We are looking to develop alternative avenues for our high-quality Northern Territory cattle.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Goyder again for his question. As we all know, the live cattle export industry is vital to the pastoral industry of the Northern Territory and, in particular, the Top End. I am pleased to say that records are still being set. Last year, 283 000 head of cattle left the Port of Darwin for Indonesia and Malaysia and parts of South-East Asia. That is 55 000 head up on 2006. I am also pleased to say that, of that 283 000 that left the Port of Darwin, Northern Territory cattle numbered 247 000, which is up 24 000 on 2006. It is significant to see that our cattle are leaving our shores for Indonesia.
I was pleased to deliver an opening address recently to celebrate Siba shipping’s world record haulage with their ship, the Stella Deneb. It transported 22 184 head of cattle across to Indonesia. Those cattle were loaded in 34 hours, which equates to around about 11 cattle per minute. It is quite an extraordinary feat to have that done, and I acknowledge the skill of the organisations involved and the coordination that went to ensuring that these cattle were placed on the ship in good welfare: the export depots; the trucking companies that delivered the cattle to the port; my division of Primary Industry, obviously, for the work that they have undertaken; the veterinarians; the stockfeed companies who supply the feed for the trip; and, obviously, the stevedores on the wharf who helped load the cattle. That was supported by the state-of-the-art infrastructure that is on the wharf at the moment. As you can see, our government is supporting the industry by ensuring that infrastructure is up to date.
Our industry conforms with the highest regulatory standards that are required for animal welfare. I am pleased to say that we go through a number of processes to ensure that the conditioning of the animals is up to scratch when they leave the port. They are only short haulages - three to six days at the most - to get to their final port of call, with similar climate conditions, obviously, and we have an experienced stock handler on board. It just goes to show that our animal welfare issues are well addressed.
Indonesia is our main focus. However, I want to look at other areas of the market. We need alternative markets for our cattle. I am pleased to say that, next month, I will be travelling to Vietnam with members of my Division of Primary Industry, with the Northern Territory Cattlemen’s Association and the Northern Territory Livestock Exporters Association. We will be meeting with a number of people and the government while we are in Vietnam. This is a follow-up to the previous Chief Minister’s visit last year. We are looking to develop alternative avenues for our high-quality Northern Territory cattle.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016