Reuben Brand on his investigations in the Middle East regarding the live export trade

Over the past seven months I have been working closely with the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and have done numerous in depth investigations inside abattoirs and livestock markets throughout the Middle East – namely Dubai, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.

Australia is the largest exporter of live animals in the world. They also profess to have the best animal welfare standards in the world - but for the sheep that are crammed into a space of approximately three per square metre and sent on a three to four week sea voyage to the Middle East; welfare does not come into the equation.

On average 40,000 sheep die en route every year, with most of these deaths attributed to starvation as the sheep don’t recognise the foreign pellets they are given to eat as a source of food. The ones that perish at sea are generally known as “the lucky ones” as the fate awaiting those that survive is a very grim tale of cruelty.

Sheep in each country that I documented were all in a state of heightened stress, some suffering from severe dehydration, some malnourished, others were coughing, spluttering, gasping for air and even bleeding from the nose, whilst some suffered from all of the above.

The fact that only 20 per cent of these animals are slaughtered for religious purposes and the remaining 80 per cent are slaughtered purely for daily consumption and on sold to local butcher shops and supermarkets, really highlights the absurdity of such an inhumane trade.

A sheep processed in Australia is worth 20 per cent more to the Australian economy than a sheep that is exported live. Do the math and you will see that in phasing out the live export trade and implementing a chilled meat trade, where animals are humanely slaughtered in accordance to strict Halal guidelines in Australia is an economically viable and lucrative alternative.

Cruelty does not discriminate, nor does it take a day off – so either should we.