Australian beef levy seen as harmful to industry

The A$5 per head Beef Transaction Levy is too high, and would reward the Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) for failure, according to Australian Beef Association (ABA) Chairman Brad Bellinger.

Australian cattle farmers have the second lowest price in the developed world, and they get less for their cattle than they were nine years ago, Bellinger said, adding that the levy should be reduced to A$1.

ABA claimed that MLA managing director David Palmer has a higher salary than the Prime Minister and the CEO of Macquarie Bank.

ABA said Australian producers have the highest costs in the world with the A$5 levy on every beast sold.

The US has a US$1 levy and US cow calf producers get nearly twice the price that their Australian counterparts receive. Australian producers also have large costs from the National Livestock Identification System, unlike their competitors, ABA said.

"Australian domestic beef consumption falls far short of our competitors - this has been concealed over the years by a deceptive system of calculation, which attributes the weight of pet food and carcass bone to human consumption. Australian nutritionists should recalculate consumption down 30 percent and start recommending an increase in beef consumption to consumers," said ABA.