Don't kill a great source of export income

After six years on tenterhooks - and a midnight notice of an impending announcement - the fate of this major industry has been determined by activist politics, and 1 May 2028 has been declared the day the ships will stop.

Anxiety, fear and fury are rife among the ranks of Australia's sheep producers, and support from decision makers is nowhere in sight.

$26 million a year will not touch the sides when it comes to transitioning away from a trade that is the next best sales option for sheep producers in our nation when poor conditions, market failure or myriad other factors come into force.

As ships leave our shores for other nations and our market access is lost, Western Australia's sheep flock is so exposed it could decrease by as much as 20 to 30 percent, and systemic change could soon sweep the country with potentially unmanageable risk for our $4.4-billion-dollar sheep meat and live sheep industries - let alone our $3.1-billion-dollar wool clip.

But the Federal Government reckons about sixty million will do the trick to support sheep producers and the supply chain?

It's a few breadcrumbs for the botched decisions which we've borne the brunt of too many times before.

Too often, activist agendas are prioritized over the cornerstones we need to feed and clothe people.

Too often, the damage bills from these political bans are never paid - and the lessons are never learnt.

Australian agriculture has battled bans from Beijing and now our own government has started to do the same by shutting down our live sheep by sea trade. Why does this government insist on turning against us, time and time again?

Switching off our own markets makes no sense - and if you shut down farmers, you shut down the food for the world.