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Each year, Australia loads millions of live sheep and cattle onto ships and exports them to countries in the Middle East and Asia that have few, if any, laws governing the humane treatment of animals. Because undercover investigations conducted over the years have consistently exposed atrocities during every leg of the journey, activists are working to eliminate live exports altogether.

In response to mounting anger among members of the public, the Australian government rolled out a set of “welfare” regulations in 2011 to protect exported animals – the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance Program (ESCAS). Activists say that Australia simply cannot protect animals once they are unloaded from the ships, and they have ample documentation taken in destination countries to demonstrate that ESCAS does not work.

This week, the Minister of Agriculture Barnaby Joyce stated that a review of ESCAS “demonstrates that Australian livestock exported overseas are treated humanely in almost every instance.” Donny Moss of TheirTurn.net speaks to Australian activist Tanya Hardy about this claim, the reality and where activists go from here.

Please visit Animals Australia’s Ban Live Export initiative to learn more about live exports and find out how you can help.