Dairy Live Export Industry Stocktake Phase Two

Summary

​There are strong expectations from the Australian government, community and dairy producers that dairy cattle exported live will be well cared for, during export and after arrival overseas.  Over the last five years Australia has exported more than 380,000 breeding dairy cattle. China has been the largest market, taking close to 80% of the cattle, with the remainder exported to a diverse range of markets and dairy production systems around the globe. Dairy cattle exports have become an integral part of the Australian dairy industry. Live exports have provided Australian dairy farmers with an alternative income stream and have significantly increased the value of Holstein heifers. A specialist group of heifer rearers has emerged, dedicated to growing out and backgrounding dairy heifers for live export.

This stocktake is a desktop review of animal welfare risks and risk management of Australian dairy cattle exports. It provides an overview of the major markets for Australian dairy cattle and assessments of welfare risks and ways of mitigating them. As such it contributes to the information base required to develop the next stages of policy and strategy by the industry which is currently under development.