Sheep maltreatment allegations

Claims of poor animal welfare practices in the wool industry have caused a stir in recent weeks.
 
Animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (Peta) raised concerns after it went to 11 farms and shearing sheds in New Zealand producing ZQ-certified wool from 2023 to the end of last year.
 
The alleged incidents of disturbing conduct included hitting sheep with objects, repeatedly slamming a sheep's head into a board, and Peta also claimed sheep were "routinely hit, beaten in the face, and stitched up with needle and thread with no pain medication".
 
It is easy to understand Federated Farmers' initial angry response to the allegations, in the heat of the moment.
 
Times are tough enough for the meat and wool industry without bad publicity, and selling wool may not even cover the cost of shearing.
 
But rather than dismissing the footage released as a disgraceful hit job from those with an anti-farm agenda intended to make people think such practices were commonplace, the organisation might have been better to limit its comments to supporting a thorough investigation.
 
The Ministry of Primary Industries investigation has analysed 235 video files, identifying some instances which it has described as "very concerning".
 
These will be investigated further.
 
The allegations will be a worry for the ZQ programme and the New Zealand Merino Company (NZM) which markets its wool from 600 growers, ZQ declares itself the world's first ethical wool programme "created in 2007 to ensure the best animal welfare, environmental integrity, social responsibility, fibre quality, and traceability standards". 
 
The company was already under pressure, posting a $3.29 million net loss after tax for the last financial year, due to flat demand as a result of an oversupply of wool and subdued consumer spending in the tough economic climate.
 
It has rejected any notion animal abuse is a typical occurrence in the ZQ programme, with its growers committed to being part of a standard advocating for the highest levels of animal welfare.
 
It points out it banned the controversial practice of mulesing / live lamb cutting (the removal of strips of wool-bearing skin from around the buttocks of lambs, often without anaesthetic, to prevent infection from flystrike) on ZQ farms a decade before it was outlawed throughout the country in 2018. It has yet to be banned in Australia.
 
The company is running its own investigation of alleged breaches of its ZQ standard and says it has been able to identify two ZQ farms from the footage, as well as a number of non ZQ growers.
 
It has suspended the two ZQ farms from its programme, quarantined their unprocessed wool, and is investigating further.
 
As well, it has initiated a rapid response assessment of all ZQ farms to determine current animal welfare protocols are being upheld and identify any potential gaps in its monitoring process.
 
Its third-party auditor, Control Union, has been asked to complete an additional 50 animal welfare-focused spot inspections by the end of next month.
 
The company's in-shed observations during shearing will now also include a third-party auditor.
 
NZM is examining its monitoring and control protocols during shearing and animal handling practices to see if they can be improved.
 
One of the ideas being considered is the use of video surveillance during shearing.
 
Peta is calling for mandatory installation of live-streaming web cameras in all shearing sheds, but we are not surprised this has been dismissed as too expensive and impractical by Federated Farmers.
 
The question of who would pay, install, and monitor such cameras in thousands of woolsheds has not been spelled out.
 
Associate Agriculture Minister Andrew Hoggard has also given the idea the thumbs down, referring to the impracticality of installing and monitoring such cameras, and privacy concerns.
 
Although the outcome of the MPI investigation has yet to be determined, it is good to know that separately from this the ministry is working with wool sector groups to establish an oversight group to support good animal welfare practice and continuous improvement in the industry.
 
The wool-buying public needs to be confident good practice is followed, and anybody transgressing can be promptly called to account.