The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) and the entire livestock industry in Australia have condemned the shocking examples of animal cruelty depicted on the Four Corners program. All farmers, like all Australians, found the footage highly distressing and totally unacceptable.
The NFF agrees with the Australian Government’s decision to suspend the supply of Australian cattle to the Indonesian facilities where such practices have been identified, and fully backs the Government’s investigation into the intolerable practices shown in the recent footage.
The NFF is working with the livestock industry to ensure animal welfare standards in Indonesia are improved, and to ensure the ethical treatment of livestock is enforced. The livestock industry has committed to a plan that will ensure Australian cattle are only supplied to 25 accredited Indonesian processing facilities currently meeting OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health) animal welfare standards; the positioning of permanent animal welfare officers at accredited processing facilities to ensure processing consistently meets these standards; and a rapid increase in the use of stunning (which exceeds the OIE standards). The NFF will continue to work with the livestock industry on this issue to ensure all animal welfare concerns are addressed.
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