The livestock export industry has a complex relationship with the community.
While there is strong recognition of its contribution to the Australian economy and nutrition overseas, there is also concern over animal welfare, with some people very vocal in their opposition to the trade. This can put pressure on decision-making by politicians and regulators.
Since 2019, an independent third party has been conducting research based on a solid scientific approach to help understand the community’s views on various facets of the livestock export supply chain.
This is being done by CSIRO spin out company Voconiq, through nationally representative surveys of more than 4,000 people each time. The results are being used to guide the development of communication, research and policy activities to help re-set the conversation with the Australian public.
This project is managed by the Livestock Export RD&E Program, a collaboration between LiveCorp and Meat & Livestock Australia.
To gather credible data and report on Australian community attitudes toward livestock exports, including the drivers of trust and acceptance, through nationally representative surveys of more than 4,000 Australians.
This project will ensure politicians, livestock exporters and others have a factual basis for understanding what the community thinks about livestock exports, including trends over time, based on a representative survey of Australians.
It also highlights the key issues of concern, providing guidance for industry management practices, research efforts and communication strategies.