Page 5 - Australian Pork Newspaper

Feral pig estimated annual $100m damage bill
UN backdown
on anti-meat
campaign
THE Australian government has wel- comed the United Nations’ decision to abandon its mis- leading and ideo- logical campaign against meat pro- ducers both in Aus- tralia and around the world.
of touch tweet.
“It was also irre-
Australian Min- ister for Agriculture David Littleproud said the UN’s attempt to blame meat producers for driving climate change was reckless and irresponsible, and deserved the strong condemnation with which it was met.
sponsible to compare emissions from meat production to those created by the oil in- dustry, exposing a fundamental misun- derstanding and a de- liberate misrepresen- tation of the science.
“I make no apology for defending Austral- ia’s meat producers against unfair and ir- responsible attacks from the UN and I am pleased that they have deleted their out
“As I said earlier this week, Australian meat producers were among the most sustainable land managers and en- vironmental stewards in the world, and we are committed to sup- porting them in their noble task of helping feed the world.
“The fact that the UN’s anti-meat Twitter campaign lasted just days dem- onstrates how out of touch the interna- tional body was found to be on this issue.
“I hope the UN will act less like an activist organisation in future and focus instead on their job of promoting peace and prosperity,” Minister Littleproud said.
A REPORT published percent of the country – Dr Channon said that
ranging omnivorous diet, tional Feral Pig Action
this week by Australian Pork Limited has con- firmed that feral pigs are second only to rabbits in terms of their economic impact as an invasive species in Australia.
some 3.43 million square kilometres.
while feral pigs are pro- lific in Queensland, the Northern Territory and NSW, local populations can be found across the continent, especially near wetlands and other water- courses.
which is why feral pig management is such a complex issue for industry and all tiers of govern- ment.
Plan steering group held on July 15 and chaired by experienced agribusiness leader John Maher.
The report is part of the development of the Na- tional Feral Pig Action Plan, a $1.4 million fed- eral government initiative which is being managed by APL due to the direct threat feral pigs pose to Australia’s commercial pork industry as potential carriers of African swine fever.
“This report confirms that even conservative modelling indicates feral pigs cause more than $100 million in direct economic costs to the ag- ricultural sector each year.
She said analysis is being undertaken by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural Resource Economics and Sciences to estimate the feral pig population’s current dis- tribution and density.
“The challenge of the National Feral Pig Ac- tion Plan is to develop a coordinated, best-practice approach to feral pig man- agement, similar to what the National Wild Dog Action Plan is delivering.
The steering group rep- resents a wide range of stakeholder groups and is guiding the development of a preliminary action plan to be delivered to the federal Department of Agriculture by January 2021.
National Feral Pig Man- agement coordinator Dr Heather Channon said, “Feral pigs are one of the most destructive invasive species in Australia, with an estimated national population of up to 24 million spread across 45
“The potential cost posed by feral pigs’ ability to act as carriers of en- demic and exotic diseases is substantial.
“Typically, 55-70 per- cent of feral pigs need to be culled annually to keep the population size from expanding,” Dr Channon said.
• Dr Heather Channon (National Feral Pig Man- agement coordinator)
“They cause losses in productivity through livestock predation, com- peting for feed, fouling water sources, damaging farm infrastructure, reducing crop yields, spreading invasive weeds and acting as a vector for disease.
“Feral pigs can increase their population by more than 85 percent a year.
“Effective management of feral pigs will require a well-coordinated ap- proach between all rel- evant stakeholders and the success of a sustained re- duction in damage caused by feral pigs will be con- tingent upon ongoing con- trol, continued monitoring and cohesive control ef- forts.”
Making up the National Feral Pig Action Plan steering group are:
“The annual estimated damage bill of $100 mil- lion seems to be the tip of the iceberg.”
“We’re dealing with highly fertile, intelligent animals with a wide-
The release of the APL report coincides with the first meeting of the Na-
• Mr Ricky Archer (North Australian Indig- enous Land and Sea Man- agement Alliance)
• Mr John Maher (Inde- pendent chair)
• Ms Margo Andrae (Australian Pork Ltd)
• Dr Bruce Christie (DPI NSW, Environment and Invasives Committee)
• Mr John Kargotich (WA Farmers’ Federation) • Mr Matthew Koval (Department of Agricul- ture, Water and the Envi-
ronment)
• Mr Darren Marshall
(NRM Regions Australia) • Dr Leigh Nelson (Grains Research and De-
velopment Corporation)
• Mr David Palmer (Centre for Invasive Spe-
cies Solutions)
• Dr Justin Perry
(CSIRO)
• Ms Zena Ronnfeldt
(AgForce Queensland)
• Ms Emma White (Kimberley Pilbara Cat-
tlemen’s Association)
• Mr Jason Wishart (Ag-
riculture Victoria)
www.porknews.com.au
Australian Pork Newspaper, August 2020 – Page 5