The National Sheep Association (NSA) is urging the government not to allow new legislation banning live export of livestock for slaughter to impede a return to the export of breeding livestock to the EU.
The Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill was discussed in Parliament on Monday (December 4) , and delivers on a key manifesto commitment to ban the export of live animals including cattle, sheep, pigs, goats and horses.
The aim of the bill is to end the suffering of animals undergoing the stress of long journeys overseas, and the potential injuries that may occur as a result.
The NSA said that, as the ability to export stock destined for slaughter has been halted, British farmers have also faced a “severe barrier” in their ability to export breeding stock.
None have been going over the “short straight route to continent”, the trade association for UK sheep farmers said, due to the absence of a live animal Border Control Post (BCP) at Calais, France, meaning any movements have to go far further via Scotland, Northern Ireland and through the Republic of Ireland.
The NSA said it is therefore calling on the UK government and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to urgently explore ways to overcome the absence of any live animal facility over the short straights.
The association also wants the government to be clear in communications that it is not only continuing to allow the export of live breeding animals, but actively supporting it.
Breeding livestock exports
NSA chief executive, Phil Stocker, said: “NSA has accepted that we will no longer see exports of live sheep for slaughter, even though we know a strong case could be made for this to be done in high welfare conditions and with journey times no longer than on British mainland.
“We have now had two years where no slaughter lambs have been exported live but the trade in carcasses and cuts has been strong – adding value here and arguably protecting our international reputation.
“However, we cannot allow this to continue to muddy the water relating to the export of animals destined for breeding and we are concerned that the current noise is doing nothing to build confidence in the investment in live animal facilities at Calais, or in negotiations over those live animal checks being done at new facilities in GB.”
Stocker said farmers have been in a situation for two years now, where live breeding animals can enter the UK from the EU but very few are able to go out to meet the “strong demand” for English high-quality genetics from EU sheep farmers.
“We also need to prepare for significant potential interest from Ukraine when they start to rebuild their farming sectors and to not have infrastructure in place to support their efforts would be inexcusable,” he said.
