Livestock Carriers News

An open letter has called on Australia’s Albanese Government to deliver on its election promise and legislate an end to live sheep export.The call, from the RSPCA and 10 other Australian animal protection organisations, comes nearly six months after the independent panel’s report was delivered to the Government — with still no plan for how and when live sheep export will be phased out.“Australians were relieved when the Albanese Government took this promise to the 2022 federal election,” said RSPCA Australia CEO Richard Mussell.

South African animal welfare organization NSPCA has applauded a Judgment from the Eastern Cape Division of the High Court, Makhanda, affirming the NSPCA’s ability to screen all animals being readied for loading on the Al Messilah livestock carrier which docked in the East London Harbour on April 2.The exporter, Al Mawashi, working through Page Farming Company, made an application in the High Court on March 29 designed to prevent the NSPCA from marking compromised animals to prevent them from being loaded and to stop NSPCA from screening for pregnant ewes.“Al Mawashi…

The German animal welfare organization Animal Welfare Foundation and the French environmental organization Robin des Bois have published a report on the safety risks associated with livestock carriers trading from the European Union. This snapshot of the fleet follows one produced by the organizations three years ago.Currently, 64 livestock carriers are permitted to load European animals on EU-ports to then export them to third countries. The report states that nearly half of…

Over 100 cattle have died after departing Australia on the Brahman Express. The vessel, built in 2002 and operated by Vroon, was destined for Indonesia.This is one of the highest mortality rates reported on an Australian short haul cattle shipment, states Vets Against Live Export in a blog, which notes that the mortality rate of 7.69% on the GL Kaihou’s maiden voyage in 2017 is still likely to be higher. On the GL Kaihou, 95 cattle died after the vessel’s non-slip flooring was found to be ineffective.The Australian Department of Agriculture (DAFF) stated that…

Around 14,500 livestock sailed from Australia to Israel on Sunday for the second time, two months after their first voyage was curtailed by the threat of attack by Houthi militants in the Red Sea.The animals left Fremantle port in Perth on Jan. 5 but halfway to the Middle East, their ship abandoned its route and was ordered home by the Australian government.The turn-back was part of the havoc wrought by the Houthi strikes in support of Hamas militants in Palestine that have forced…

The Australian Alliance for Animals and the RSPCA have expressed dismay over the decision by Australia’s Department of Agriculture to allow the re-export of more than 15,000 sheep on board the Bahijah to the Middle East.Originally, 16,000 Australian sheep and cattle were onboard the Bahijah for over a month after the vessel departed from Australia and then turned back from the Middle East due to maritime security concerns in the Red Sea. It was then recalled to Perth by the Department of Agriculture.The animals were unloaded after the Department rejected a plan for their immediate re-export.

Thousands of sheep and cattle stuck on a ship that was forced to abandon a passage through the Red Sea last month have begun disembarking at the same Australian port they left nearly six weeks ago, Australia's agriculture ministry said late on Monday.The MV Bahijah sailed from Fremantle, Western Australia on Jan. 5 for Israel with about 14,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle on board, but diverted from its route due to the threat of attack by Yemen's Houthi militia before being ordered…

The Australian Alliance for Animals has written an open letter to animal exporters imploring them to voluntarily suspend all live animal exports to or through the Red Sea while the risk of attack remains and to suspend any extended journeys to the Middle East via the Cape of Good Hope.The move follows the recently aborted voyage of the Bahijah. The livestock carrier sailed from Australia for Israel on January 5 but was recalled over a week into the voyage after diverting towards…

The Australian government refused a request by an Israeli livestock exporter to send a ship carrying around 14,000 sheep and hundreds of cattle on a month-long voyage around Africa to Israel earlier this week, but it left the way open for other options.The Bahijah sailed from Australia for Israel on January 5 but was recalled over a week into the voyage after diverting towards South Africa, unwilling to sail through the Red Sea.The ship has been docked in Fremantle port, Western Australia…

The Australian government said on Monday it had refused a request by a livestock exporter to send a ship carrying around 14,000 sheep and 1,500 cattle on a month-long voyage around Africa to Israel.The animals have been on board the vessel for a month, prompting outcry from animal rights advocates who have likened their treatment to torture.The MV Bahijah sailed from Australia for Israel on Jan. 5 but abandoned a passage through the Red Sea due to threat of attack by Yemen's Houthi…

A ship carrying 16,000 sheep and cows that turned back from the Red Sea due to the risk of attack off Yemen was stranded at an Australian port in a heatwave on Friday as the exporter sought to offload at least some of the animals into quarantine.Meanwhile, another vessel carrying an even larger cargo - tens of thousands of animals - from Australia sailed for a Red Sea port in Jordan, with a contingency plan to unload them in the Gulf if it fails to obtain permission to enter the…

A ship carrying around 14,000 sheep and 2,000 cattle is marooned off the coast of Australia in sweltering heat after it was forced to abandon a trip through the Red Sea, causing outcry from people concerned about the animals' welfare.The vessel left Australia on Jan. 5 for Israel, where it was to unload, but diverted from its course in mid-January due to the threat of attack by Yemen's Houthi militia before being ordered home by the Australian government.The animals are now in limbo and could be discharged in Australia…

Vroon announced it has acquired a livestock carrier from the Tsuneishi Group.The 83.9-meter-long vessel, Aurochs, purpose-built by Tsuneishi Group (Zhoushan) Shipbuilding Inc. in 2017, is the youngest livestock carrier operating in the global market.The ship will be renamed Friesian Express and managed by Vroon's Livestock Express team as the 13th vessel in the company's livestock fleet. The ship has just departed from Australia on its maiden voyage under our ownership.Following its restructuring last year…

The Australian Government has recalled the livestock carrier Bahijah after it diverted from the Red Sea over a week into its voyage to the Middle East.The Bahijah loaded cattle and sheep in Fremantle, Western Australia, and departed for the Middle East on January 5, 2024. The vessel has an Israeli company name painted in large letters along the side of the hull.At the time of departure, the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) said it was satisfied that the arrangements for the transport of the livestock were appropriate to ensure their health and welfare.

A new report provides insights into animal welfare issues during transport within and from the EU.Around 44 million farmed animals a year are transported, including unweaned calves and lambs on journeys from Europe lasting up to three weeks.Inadequate and misleading official records are masking the true horror and scale of the EU’s long-distance trade in farmed animals, say the international NGOs Eurogroup for Animals and Compassion in World Farming, on release of the report.

The RSPCA has welcomed the tabling of the Australian federal Minister for Agriculture's response to one of the largest Australian parliamentary e-petitions in history, calling for an end to live sheep export.Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Murray Watt, stated: “The Australian Government acknowledges the considerable community concerns about animal welfare in the trade of live sheep exports by sea and understands the desire to see action.“The government took the commitment to phase out live sheep exports by sea to two elections…

The animal cruelty charges that were brought against livestock export company Emanuel Exports have been dropped by prosecutors in Perth, Australia.Around 2,400 sheep died on the Awassi Express (subsequently renamed the Anna Marra) on a voyage from Fremantle to the Middle East in August 2017.The situation was brought to public attention when Animals Australia obtained whistleblower footage which was broadcast on a 60 Minutes program in April 2018. Footage from five separate voyages showed sheep suffering heat stress, some bogged in feces.

The King's Speech on November 7 set out the UK Government's agenda for the coming political year, and the animal welfare charity RSPCA is pleased that a live export ban - via an Animal Welfare (Livestock Exports) Bill - was amongst the issues raised in the supplementary notes.The RSPCA has campaigned to outlaw live exports for more than 50 years. Today, around 1.6 million farm animals – cattle, sheep, pigs and horses – are transported huge distances across Europe annually, some for slaughter…

The livestock carrier Brahman Express suffered an engine room fire and returned to the Port of Darwin, Australia, on Wednesday.The vessel had approximately 3,600 cattle onboard and was bound for Indonesia when the incident occurred.No injuries to crew and no animal welfare issues have been reported.In a statement to ABC Rural, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority said it understood the fire was extinguished promptly.The livestock are expected to be discharged in Darwin.In May, the livestock carrier Nine Eagle experienced a major engine failure after leaving Darwin with 1,600 cattle onboard and was forced to return to port.

Ocean explorer Rob McCallum has offered to join a mission to find and retrieve the data recorder of the livestock carrier that capsized in the East China Sea in 2020.Reporting by 7News.com.au indicates that McCallum is confident that his team could find the Gulf Livestock 1, offering fresh hope to the families of the missing crew after some recently voiced disappointment with the investigation report into the catastrophe published by flag state Panama.The livestock carrier was sailing from New Zealand to China with 43 crew and approximately 6,000 dairy cattle onboard when it capsized in the East China Sea during Typhoon Maysak. 40 crew members remain missing after the capsize.As vessel flag state…

Indonesia has informed Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) that lumpy skin disease (LSD) has been detected in Australian cattle exported to Indonesia by sea.Indonesia has now suspended cattle imports from four Australian pre-export quarantine facilities.Australia’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr Mark Schipp, issued a statement saying that the finding came after those cattle had arrived and spent some time in Indonesia.“As Australia’s Chief Veterinary Officer…

The Feedlot Manager of the live export company Al Mawashi has been arrested in South Africa after animal welfare inspectors found over 126 rams with their horns cut off - in an attempt to make them eligible for export by sea to Kuwait.The dehorning was done after the NSPCA Inspectors had left the feedlot, once the loading of animals had been concluded for the day.The Inspectors were horrified to find the distressed rams, some bleeding profusely. “The horns are thick on these large rams and they were cut/sawn off…

Malaysia has paused the import of all live cattle and buffalo from Australia citing concern about lumpy skin disease (LSD).The move follows a decision last month by Indonesia to halt live cattle imports from four locations in Australia after 13 cattle were found to have the disease.Australia’s Chief Veterinary Officer Mark Schipp has released a statement saying that Australia is urgently engaging with its Malaysian counterparts to advise that LSD is not present in Australia.“I have made representations to my Malaysian counterpart…