06/06/2023
Australians have demonstrated growing confidence in the livestock export industry, including its animal welfare standards, according to new research into community sentiment based on surveys from 2019 to 2023.
Carried out by CSIRO spin-off Voconiq and funded by the research bodies for livestock exporters and producers, LiveCorp and Meat & Livestock Australia, the project has involved surveys of more than 4,000 Australians each time.
Voconiq CEO, Dr Kieren Moffat, says the research program represents the largest, most authoritative and comprehensive dataset on Australian attitudes toward the livestock export industry.
“We examine a broad set of components in the supply chain, from sourcing the animals, through the voyage overseas, to their treatment in destination markets,” Dr Moffat said.
“The 2023 survey once again shows the community strongly values the role of live exports in regional communities, its contribution to the Australian economy, and the important market it provides for livestock farmers.
“There’s recognition of the benefits of the industry to people overseas, for health and cultural reasons, the transfer of know-how, and breeding stock to increase food security. Recognition of the industry’s contribution to improved diet and nutrition, for instance, has increased substantially since 2019.”
Animal welfare remains a key component of the conversation between the industry and community.
“Australians remain concerned about animal welfare in the live export industry, but there has been a significant improvement in responses since 2019,” Dr Moffat said.
“There’s strong understanding that welfare is a complex issue and participants’ views reflect growing awareness of the work of the industry to improve welfare outcomes and treatment in overseas destinations.”
A series of questions was added in 2023 to explore any differences in sentiment toward the live sheep export industry specifically, compared to the industry overall.
“We asked the same questions both ways, in separate parts of the survey, and there was no significant difference in the results,” Dr Moffat said.
“For instance, when asked about costs versus benefits, 36% of participants said benefits outweighed the costs in both instances, and the costs and benefits were about equal for 37% and 38% of participants for sheep and the general industry, respectively.”
LiveCorp CEO Wayne Collier said the work has proven invaluable over the years.
“The research doesn’t just delve into what Australians think about live exports, but why they think that way,” Mr Collier said.
“By knowing what components of the industry and its performance are driving trust and acceptance, we can respond – or make sure we’re communicating how the industry has already responded.
“It’s pleasing to see that our efforts since the first survey appear to be having an effect. However, we know more needs to be done and we will continue to work in areas of concern to the community.”
The Voconiq report Live exports and the Australian community 2019-2023 can be found here. There is also an infographic here.
Surveys were conducted in 2019-20, late 2021 and early 2023. Responses were collected via an online research panel of Australians over the age of 18, matched to Australian Bureau of Statistics population data by location, age and gender. People were not told of the topic until after agreeing to participate.
Analysis was conducted on 4,830 responses in 2019, 4,411 in 2021 and 4,716 in 2023.