July 22, 2011

Australian cattle producers may send extra to Queensland feedlots

Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) is urging northern Australia cattle producers who would normally export to Indonesia to start looking for alternative markets, although feedlots in Queensland may be able to absorb the extra cattle.

Bruce Hutchinson, a feedlotter in Queensland's Burnett region, said that there is capacity in the state's feedlots to take extra cattle from northern Australia if live export markets are sluggish.

A slow export market could lead to an influx of livestock onto domestic markets and into feedlots, he said.

"As long as the weights are right and the types of cattle are suitable to be fed I'm sure they'll make their way to feedlots," Hutchinson said. "There's feedlot capacity throughout Queensland at the moment because there is a depressed Japanese market, so feedlots are running to probably 50% capacity."

Northern Australia cattle producers have also been sending their cattle to South Australia abattoirs, due to overcrowded northern abattoirs.