QUEENSLAND Agriculture Minister John McVeigh has welcomed the Indonesian government's talk of a possible increase in the live cattle import quota.
However, Dr McVeigh said no announcement had yet been made by the Indonesian government.
Dr McVeigh, travelling through Indonesia with Northern Territory Primary Industries Minister Willem Westra Van Holthe, met with Indonesian Minister for Agriculture Mr Suswono in Jakarta yesterday.
Mr Suswono welcomed the ministers and spoke about his government's wish to increase production of beef and the desire for Australia to invest in beef programs in Indonesia.
"In (our) meeting with Mr Suswono, he talked about the need to increase beef consumption in his country and also the option of a possible increase in live cattle imports by bringing forward the next third-quarter quota by one month,” Dr McVeigh said.
"Even that small move, we've calculated would mean an extra 20 to 25,000 cattle out of northern Australia in the short-term being required."
Average prices for cattle so far this year are down 46 per cent on 2012, and much of the downturn has been attributed to the loss of live export sales amid dry conditions and fractured market relationships.
Most of the cattle in the Northern Territory are destined for the live export market but, since the federal government's temporary ban on live exports was enforced, the quota has more than halved - and with one-third of Queensland and NT in drought, there is no capacity for those cattle to stay grazing on domestic properties.
During the meeting with Mr Suswono, Dr McVeigh stressed the importance of building long-term relations between northern Australia and Indonesia.
Before the month-long live export suspension two years ago - precipitated by an ABC expose on animal cruelty in Indonesian abattoirs - Indonesia’s cattle import numbers hit an historic high with Australia sending 750,000 head of cattle a year to the market in 2009, followed by 520,000 in 2010.
However, Dr McVeigh said no announcement had yet been made by the Indonesian government.
Dr McVeigh, travelling through Indonesia with Northern Territory Primary Industries Minister Willem Westra Van Holthe, met with Indonesian Minister for Agriculture Mr Suswono in Jakarta yesterday.
Mr Suswono welcomed the ministers and spoke about his government's wish to increase production of beef and the desire for Australia to invest in beef programs in Indonesia.
"In (our) meeting with Mr Suswono, he talked about the need to increase beef consumption in his country and also the option of a possible increase in live cattle imports by bringing forward the next third-quarter quota by one month,” Dr McVeigh said.
"Even that small move, we've calculated would mean an extra 20 to 25,000 cattle out of northern Australia in the short-term being required."
Average prices for cattle so far this year are down 46 per cent on 2012, and much of the downturn has been attributed to the loss of live export sales amid dry conditions and fractured market relationships.
Most of the cattle in the Northern Territory are destined for the live export market but, since the federal government's temporary ban on live exports was enforced, the quota has more than halved - and with one-third of Queensland and NT in drought, there is no capacity for those cattle to stay grazing on domestic properties.
During the meeting with Mr Suswono, Dr McVeigh stressed the importance of building long-term relations between northern Australia and Indonesia.
Before the month-long live export suspension two years ago - precipitated by an ABC expose on animal cruelty in Indonesian abattoirs - Indonesia’s cattle import numbers hit an historic high with Australia sending 750,000 head of cattle a year to the market in 2009, followed by 520,000 in 2010.
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