THE Goat Industry Council of Australia has opened bookings for a series of face-to-face meetings to consult on a proposal to increase the goat livestock transaction levy and equivalent goat owner export levy.

GICA will hold 11 meetings across the country, starting in Gawler, South Australia on 2 July and concluding in Campbell Town in Tasmania on 4 August, with sessions also scheduled for New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and Victoria.

The full list of events can be found here and bookings can be made by clicking the links to each event. Click here for a previous Sheep Central story on the goat levy review.

GICA president Mr Falkenhagen urged producers to engage with the events being held around the country to consult on the levy proposal.

“The goat industry is a great industry, and it is continuing to grow because producers see a future.

“These face-to-face events are a real opportunity for us all to get together and discuss our proposal and any other ideas to make our industry even greater,” he said.

“We have had a record year, and the appeal of our product is growing not just globally but here in Australia.

“We need the investment we have proposed to fully realise the potential that each and every goat producer has.”

GICA has identified the need to review the current goat livestock transaction levy, which is collected at a rate of 37.7 cents per head, with funds apportioned for research and development, marketing, Animal Health Australia and the National Residue Survey. The levy was set in 1997. GICA said it engaged with service providers such as Meat & Livestock Australia, NRS, AHA the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry and reviewed the relevant data, informed council deliberations, before developing their proposal for producers.

The centrepiece of the proposal is an increase in the levy from 37.7 cents to 90 cents per goat transaction, with an increase proposed for all four service providers.

“We believe that the proposal is in the best long-term interests of the entire goat sector.

“We need to invest in all areas to keep up with the maturity of our industry and market access requirements for both the export and domestic sectors,” Mr Falkenhagen said.

The proposal will be voted on in November at the MLA AGM.