AS the saying goes 'good things come to those who wait' - and the wait is finally over for Western Australia's live sheep export industry.
Last Thursday, the first shipment of 51,000 sheep and 400 cattle left the Fremantle Port destined for slaughter in Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
It comes three weeks after the northern hemisphere moratorium ended on September 15, with additional maintenance work delaying livestock carrier Al Messilah.
The moratorium prohibits live sheep exports by sea to, or through, the Middle East from leaving Australia between June 1 and September 14.
Rural Export and Trading WA (RETWA) manager Murray Frangs said more than 500 people were dedicated to preparing the first shipment for departure.
Mr Frangs said all parts of the supply chain were under pressure to meet protocols and strict time-frames.
"When we consider the fact live export has the capacity to move large numbers of sheep in a short period of time, this naturally engages a lot of people over the month leading up to export," Mr Frangs said.
"Purchasing from at least 150 vendors means these farms have been visited by our buyers and agents, and the number of direct activities and transactions required to secure 51,000 head of sheep and 400 cattle are significant."
On top of this, Mr Frangs said preparation required:
105 truck loads to deliver all the sheep and cattle from farm to quarantine depots.
25 staff to manage the receivals, drafting and quality assurance checkpoints.
20 shearers and crew to handle the shearing program required to ensure wool length requirements were met.
15 veterinarians, inspectors and government agency personnel - all seeking to meet regulatory compliance protocols.
60 truck loads of fodder to be delivered to the wharf and loaded onto the vessel.
105 truck loads to deliver all the sheep and cattle from quarantine depots to the wharf.
25 people on the wharf to cover the quality inspections.
Mr Frangs said with live export accounting for 10 per cent of sheep turnoff in WA, the industry's restricted trade period created "a little intensity".
He said such intensity was only heightened ahead of last week's consignment, which was the first after the moratorium ended.
"It is all steam ahead - everyone has been waiting for a while," he said.
"Farmers have been holding sheep and there has been strain on finding new ways to move sheep - particularly last season lambs - with current limitations on the processing sector.
"It is a subtle advantage that we do have another ship due early next month, and hopefully we can clear a few more off the land at that time."
Mr Frangs said RETWA understood how important it was to provide good, clear direction when it came to shipping times.
Despite the delay, he said everyone was enthusiastic to see the season underway.
"Many of these people we haven't engaged that heavily with for three months," he said.
"It is quite difficult for them to plan how to include live export as part of their business cycle."
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RETWA aims to complete seven to eight shipments minimum this season, with three more expected to depart Fremantle Port before the end of the year.
The first of the season had a loading capacity of anywhere between 51,000 and 56,000 sheep.
However, the final number was determined by weight, as only a certain animal per square metre was allowed under government regulations.
Regulations require only sheep with a body condition score (BCS) of up to three be loaded for live export until the end of October.
In November through to April, this is increased to BCS score four.
The purpose for this is to "avoid putting the heavier animals into the warmer northern summer".
Given the season, sheep were deemed on the "heavier end" of the line.
Therefore, more space was needed for the full consignment and the overall loading number was slightly down.
As a result of this, a remaining 4000 head of sheep - qualified as BCS 4 - were sitting at the Peel feedlot.
Those sheep were left after the first consignment departed and will be eligible for the next ship.
"There were many, very healthy animals left behind but due to protocol and regulatory requirements we were unable to load them," Mr Frangs said.
"This limited some of the sheep we could put on the ship, but in conjunction meant 51,000-head was the maximum."
He added, it was a catch-22 on the positive season with an abundance of feed on the ground.
"These lambs are veracious, can eat what they want and are putting the weight on quickly," he said.
"It is a combination of events, which makes it tougher for farmers."
Mr Frangs anticipated there would be more enthusiasm for RETWA to look toward shearing some of those sheep at the Peel feedlot, with harvest approaching.
He said getting such plans in place - as soon as possible - was important.
Equally pleased to see the live export trade resume was The Livestock Collective director and Corrigin sheep farmer Steve Bolt.
From a producer's point-of-view, Mr Bolt said the importance of the live export trade should not be under-estimated.
He said this season, there was a backlog of wethers, which did not make it onto the boat before the moratorium period ended.
Those wethers were left onfarm at a time domestic meat processors have struggled to keep up with processing numbers due to labour shortages.
"There have been some real good, heavy wethers unable to make the first voyage because of the department restrictions on weight and condition," Mr Bolt said.
"Hopefully, heading into November we will see those sheep make their way to the Middle East."
High input costs ahead of the next season means some mixed enterprise farmers have looked at increasing sheep numbers.
However, Mr Bolt said the ability for growers to turn-off sheep when they need to was crucial.
"Having livestock as another income source is hugely important to businesses, which have a diversification of income," he said.
"Live export is key not only in supplying that market, but also providing competition in the saleyards."
Mr Bolt again highlighted the need for Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt to visit and see first-hand what the trade means to WA.
He said the uncertainty - which came with talks of phasing out the trade - undermined grower's confidence to retain more breeding stock.
"There's no better time than now for Mr Watt to visit WA and have a look at what impact his potential decision would have on our sheep industry.
"We are keen on continuing to demonstrate the importance of the live export trade and how we can continue to safely provide that protein source for our Middle Eastern customers."
York sheep farmer Peter Boyle has supplied thousands of sheep to the live export trade since 2005.
Mr Boyle said it was great to see the season underway and he was pleased to hear the second ship was now on the run.
Like many others, he said the absolute necessity of the trade had been highlighted in recent months, particularly with a shortage of killing space.
Mr Boyle was disappointed with Mr Watt reaffirming Labor's commitment to phasing out live sheep shipping.
Instead, he said challenges - including an oversupply of hoggets, meat processor labour shortages, logistical and supply chain issues - had only highlighted the need for more boats.
"It is disappointing Mr Watt has rejected science in favour of a motion," he said.
"Science says aeroplanes carrying tourists around the world are really disastrous for the environment, but they encourage it - I think there is a contradiction in terms there."
Mr Boyle added, with more boats amid shearing shortages, producers could avoid the problem of grass seeds in the late spring.
"Why wouldn't the government want to increase their income into Australia?" he said.
"You would think they would want every dollar possible to be earned, especially when they have a huge deficit looming."
Karradale Livestock Transport, owned by Peter Tomeo, is also a major player in carting sheep and loading ships for WA's live export industry.
Mr Tomeo estimated Karradale accounted for trucking about 10,000 sheep on the first shipment.
He said the consignment went smoothly and commended everyone involved for their efforts.
"Credit should be given to everyone involved from the sheep producer to the quarantine facility, the inspectors, wharfies, veterinarians, pellet mill producers - everyone," Mr Tomeo said.
"Everything was back on track and went well with the sheep in extremely good condition.
"From our point of view it was great to see quality animals and the ship loaded without any issues.
"Live export is important not only to us as transporters, but to everyone in the industry."
