PRIME Minister Anthony Albanese has been called on to explain “hurtful” comments made to the Agrifutures Rural Women’s Award dinner in Canberra on Tuesday, in which he appeared to denigrate the entire live export sector in front of more than 500 agricultural industry stakeholders.

In an address to the gala awards dinner at Parliament House, the Prime Minister said he had dined with Indonesian President-Elect Prabowo Subianto earlier, and then stated: “when we had dinner, beautiful Australian beef, not the live export, we made sure it was dead”.

While the official transcript of Mr Albanese’s speech does not contain that line, an audio recording shared from the event supports claims he used those words in his actual address.

‘Out of touch’

Leader of The Nationals David Littleproud said he had been contacted by farmers across the country, including campaigners from Keep the Sheep, who were upset by the “hurtful” comment.

“Why the Prime Minister would choose the AgriFutures awards – a night celebrating our agriculture industry – to mock our industries is beyond me,” Mr Littleproud said.

“Farmers were already planning a rally outside Parliament House on September 10 to highlight the contempt they have been shown by Labor.

“The Prime Minister’s comments only reiterate how let down and betrayed our farmers feel and if anything, farmers will now be even more encouraged and energised to join the rally.”

“It’s no joke”

In comments included in a media release issued by Mr Littleproud, WA Livestock and Rural Transporters president and Keep the Sheep spokesperson Ben Sutherland was quoted as saying he felt betrayed and “disgusted to the core.”

“Labor throws rural communities into the wind and continually keeps laughing about it. It’s no joke, in my eyes it’s quite scary to have a government that doesn’t care about regional Australia.

“We feel betrayed. The Prime Minister is not listening to rural Australia, he is taking us for granted. He has got no concept of what he is doing to rural Australia. He is destroying industries and lives and livelihoods, with no real consequence or guilt of his own conscious.”

Australia Livestock Exporters’ Council CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton said the Prime Minister’s comments showed he “didn’t understand the industry” and it was another insult to Keep the Sheep campaigners and farmers.

“For the Prime Minister to be making light of the demise of live exports at a rural industry dinner, mere weeks after passing the devastating live sheep ban, shows an astounding lack of judgement and complete disregard for rural Australia and the families that are hurting as a result of their government’s poor decisions,” Mr Harvey-Sutton said.

The Export Control Amendment (Ending Live Sheep Export by Sea) Bill 2024 was passed in the House of Representatives and a vote for a Senate inquiry into the issue was also voted down in July.

AgForce also condemns PM’s comments

AgForce CEO Michael Guerin attended the AgriFutures gala and said the comments made on live export were “completely out of touch.”

“The Prime Minister’s comments validate the concerns of the industry that the current decision making surrounding live export is uninformed and treated dismissively,” he said

“These poorly made comments are only adding salt into the wound and are doing nothing to repair the relationship between the government and industry.

“Furthermore, this comment adds to the uncertainty regarding the government’s stance on the future of live cattle exports,” Mr Guerin said.

“AgForce seeks a clear assurance from the Prime Minister that this vital industry will not be under threat now or in future election cycles.”

Cattle crucial to Australia’s relationship with Indonesia

The  PM’s comments came as a leading member of the Australian and Indonesian cattle trade calls on the Federal Government to recognise the important role of agriculture in efforts to rebuild Australia’s crucial relationship with its near neighbour.

Indonesia’s new president-elect Prabowo Subianto has a military background but is also very closely connected to the agriculture sector in Indonesia. He served two terms as president of the influential Indonesia Farmers Association from 2004 to 2015.

Prabowo, who will be sworn in on October 20, placed food self-sufficiency, and an ambitious pledge to provide free lunches for school children in Indonesia, at the centre of his presidential election campaign platform.

In his comments at a press conference at Parliament House alongside Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra, President elect Prabowo singled out agriculture as one of “several fields in which we would like Australian help, advice, assistance”.

While Australia’s relationship with Indonesia has endured mulitple strains including and since the 2011 sudden suspension by Australia of cattle exports to Indonesia, China has actively been courting Indonesia’s new leader in recent meetings and has pledged US$21.7 billion in new Chinese investment in Indonesia to strengthen the countries’ economic and political ties.

Prabowo’s interest in agriculture presents a very strong opportunity for Australia to rebuild its strained Government to Government relationship with Indonesia through helping the country’s important agricultural sector to develop and grow, explained Greg Pankhurst, who has spent more than 30 years in the development of Indonesia’s cattle feeding industry, in last week’s Weekly Grill podcast interview with Kerry Lonegan.

Australia also had an important role to play in helping Prabowo’s free lunches program to succeed.

Amazing synergies, crucial partners

Mr Pankhurst said Prabowo’s pledge to provide 86 million school children with fresh milk and nutritious meals five days a week was a brave policy, but not unprecedented.

“It is a very, very brave policy and if it gets up and moves forward it is a great policy, and we have seen it in other countries,” he said.

“In 2000 China introduced it into their policies up there, and look at what has happened to the dairy industry in China in the last 20 years, it has gone gangbusters.”

Mr Pankhurst said Australia and Indonesia had amazing synergies but work needed to be done to rebuilt the Government to Government relations between both countries.

“You have got 280 million people on Australia’s doorstep that need product, they need food, they need technology, they need education, and here we have got Australia literally five hours in an plane to the south that can supply so many things to Indonesia.

“And we are seeing some great things happen between both countries, but the Government to Government relationship is not what it should be, it should be better than what it is.”

ALEC welcomes MLA leadership to Indonesia

Meanwhile the Australian Livestock Exporters Council (ALEC) issued a statement yesterday publicly thanking recently appointed Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) Managing Director Michael Crowley and soon-to-retire MLA Chair Alan Beckett for making Indonesia a priority during a visit this week to the crucial live export market partner.

ALEC Chair, David Galvin and ALEC CEO Mark Harvey-Sutton accompanied the MLA leadership on a supply chain tour at the key live cattle destination, Lampung, before attending an annual importer-exporter meeting in Jakarta today.

Mr Galvin said it was an excellent show of support for live cattle trade and northern cattle producers having Mr Crowley and Mr Beckett seeing the market for themselves.

“This is the first visit to Indonesia from MLA’s MD and Chair since Covid. For Indonesia to be Mr Crowley’s first international visit as MLA MD is just tremendous and a clear demonstration of the importance of Indonesia to Australia’s beef Industry,” Mr Galvin said. “Our industry is very grateful for MLA’s support.

“Indonesia is a strategic priority for the beef industry and Australia more broadly,” Mr Crowley said.

“Our industry’s partnership with Indonesia is incredibly valuable for both sides and one that MLA continues to prioritise and support through R&D and marketing investments.

“I am looking forward to seeing the live cattle supply chain in action, as well meeting representatives of Indonesian industry to better understand how we can continue to work together as partners.”