Ms O’CONNOR – Well, thank you, Madam Chair. Serves me right. I would like to talk to you about slaughterhouses. I think it is an appropriate overview question because there are different outputs which it could touch upon. In November last year, serious complaints were lodged about cruelty in slaughterhouses with your department. The footage is very graphic. What is the status of those complaints and investigations? Do you or your department expect there will be any charges laid or proceedings under the Animal Welfare Act?
Ms HOWLETT – Thank you, Chair, and I thank Ms O’Connor for her question. I, too, was absolutely horrified by the abattoir footage released last year. This is not acceptable to me, our farmers, the government or the community. That is why this government has taken action to improve animal welfare outcomes in livestock processing. I am committed to getting this right for our producers, our important livestock industry, and the jobs and family businesses the industry supports.
The Livestock Processing Taskforce has now developed new Tasmanian guidelines, and a strategy to achieve strong animal welfare practices that meets the expectations of the community. The guidelines follow the introduction of mandatory video monitoring on livestock process facilities which came into effect on 30 June. Tasmania’s Chief Veterinary Officer, and an independent recognised world expert on benchmark practices have provided input into the guidelines to ensure best practice animal welfare outcomes are adhered to. I can hand over to Rae on my right to add some more to that.
Ms O’CONNOR – What detail do you think is necessary? What we would like to know is what the further proceedings are, or if any charges have been laid.
Ms HOWLETT – I will certainly pass over to Rae, but I note that the taskforce has provided its final report guidelines and an implementation strategy. The government is working through its response to the recommendations.
Ms BURROWS – Thank you for the question. Biosecurity Tasmania (BT) set up an investigation straight away, as you can appreciate. All five abattoirs have been investigated. The investigation is still active, I’m sorry to say, so I can’t say much more at this stage.
Ms O’CONNOR – Thank you for that answer. Minister, these are complaints that were lodged with NRET in November of last year and they contain really serious allegations of cruelty in slaughterhouses in Tasmania. The investigation is still ongoing. These five slaughterhouses are still operating. Has there been any change to the practices within those slaughterhouses to prevent this kind of grotesque cruelty that is being alleged here, and in fact which is shown on video?
Ms HOWLETT – Thanks, Ms O’Connor for your question. There have been some changes, and I will refer to Rae to provide those changes that have been implemented so far.
Ms BURROWS ‑ Thank you, minister, and through you, we investigated the five and of course we don’t just wait until the results of the investigation are known before we actually instigate the necessary changes and those have been put into place. As you would be aware, one of them was an export facility and the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has dealt with that one as well.
All five of the abattoirs have brought their operations up to speed in that preceding time and also, as you’re aware, the video monitoring surveillance guidelines were released in March and they had to actually comply with those guidelines by June 30 of this year and we’ve checked the compliance of that as well.
Ms O’CONNOR – Thank you and that goes to my follow-up question. Have there been unannounced visits to Tasmanian Quality Meats, the Gretna Meatworks, Footrot Flats Pty Ltd, the Local Meat Co. – formerly known as Kentish Quality Meats – or Scottsdale Pork? I thought it was important to get those names on the Hansard.
Ms HOWLETT – Thank you, Chair, and thanks, Ms O’Connor and I’ll pass to Rae to talk about those inspections.
Ms O’CONNOR – We need some reassurance that it’s changed dramatically – the slaughter process.
Ms HOWLETT – I understand your concern.
Ms BURROWS ‑ Thank you, minister, and through you. Since that time in 2024 I can give you the following data as far as visits are concerned. It’s more than announced and unannounced visits, so, I thought a more fulsome response may be required at this point.
Just to take one step back, the Primary Produce Safety Act and accreditation actually has primarily food safety at its core, but in order to be accredited for food safety, you also have to meet several animal welfare guidelines. That’s all incorporated into food safety audits as well. I’m just prefacing that because I’m about to say that we have done food safety audits as well, so you know that we’ve done animal welfare audits at the same time.
In 2024 we did: 11 PPSA audits; four Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry audits were done by the commonwealth at TQM; 27 saleyard visits; 52 restricted animal material swill inspections; seven intensive animal production inspections; 215 animal welfare reports; 17 unannounced visits and one announced visit; and 90 third‑party food safety audits.
Ms O’CONNOR – Just to clarify before I move on for other members who want questions. Of those five that were the subject to allegations, each of them has been visited a number of times over the course of the past year, since November last year?
Ms HOWLETT – Thank you. Rae, would you like to ‑
Ms BURROWS ‑ Through you, minister, yes, the five in question have been visited, as you say, multiple times.
Ms O’CONNOR – And do you think they’re compliant now? I mean, this is a slightly unfair question to place on you, Rae, but is government reassured, or does government believe, that those slaughterhouses are now operating as humanely as you can when you’re killing animals for food?
Ms BURROWS ‑ Minister, through you. Again, we’re not there 24/7 and one of the objectives of the task force was to actually set up to change the culture, basically, of the processing facilities. We started to create a humane animal welfare culture and as you know, a cultural shift doesn’t happen overnight and it can’t happen with a regulator sitting on people’s shoulders at all times. We have to instil that desire to look after animals as a matter of course.
While they’re compliant with the rules when we visit there, I’m not saying that it’s perfect at this stage. As I say, it’s a cultural shift, but I think we’ve now provided them with the tools and guidance and over time, as we provide education and training for the staff and all the things that we’ve identified in the new guidelines, I think we will be a long way down the track, but, 100 per cent perfectly humane treatment of animals, I can’t guarantee at this point in time.
Ms O’CONNOR – Do they all have CCTV inside them now, these slaughterhouses? Every one?
Ms HOWLETT – From 30 June. Yes.
Ms O’CONNOR – Is that correct?
Ms HOWLETT – Yes.
Ms O’CONNOR – Thank you.
Ms O’CONNOR ‑ Thank you. Minister, I want to go back to the slaughterhouses issue. I note that the CCTV which is in slaughterhouses is not something that’s readily accessible immediately by Biosecurity Tasmania. Are you able to inform the committee how often Biosecurity Tasmania would look at, for example, the CCTV footage held by Tasmanian Quality Meats?
CHAIR – You don’t need to repeat them all.
Ms O’CONNOR – No, no, I’m not going to repeat all the cruelties. Thank you, Chair.
CHAIR ‑ No, but you don’t need to repeat the names again.
Ms O’CONNOR – No, I’m not going to repeat the names, but I am going to talk about Tasmanian Quality Meats, with respect, Chair.
The Farm Transparency Project footage, which was the subject of the legal complaint about Tasmanian Quality Meats was taken in August and September 2023. Five months later, your government gave this company $430,000 in May. Minister, that’s reward for cruelty, isn’t it?
My first question is how often does Biosecurity Tasmania look at the CCTV footage inside these five particular slaughterhouses? Secondly, why was the decision made to give nearly $500,000 to a company which has been accused of such grotesque cruelty?
Ms HOWLETT – Chair, I thank the member for her question. It was paramount that we provided money for that company.
Ms O’CONNOR – Why? Because they’re a Font client?
Ms HOWLETT – Do you know why?
Ms O’CONNOR ‑ Because they’re a Font client.
Ms HOWLETT – Because there would have been a huge animal welfare issue in the state and do you know why?
Ms O’CONNOR ‑ Why didn’t you just apply the regulations and make them fix it up.
Ms HOWLETT – Because they are the only bobby calf processor in this state.
Ms O’CONNOR – Yes, okay, so why should the state pay for that?
Ms HOWLETT – You know how many dairy cattle ‑
Ms O’CONNOR ‑ You rewarded cruelty.
Ms HOWLETT – and it would have destroyed the dairy industry in Tasmania. That money provided the facility to do the upgrades that were required. As I said that was an animal welfare issue and we would have had severe animal welfare impacts if that had not occurred.
Ms O’CONNOR – How do we know that that’s not happening now, given that the CCTV footage is held on the premises? I don’t know yet how often it’s looked at by Biosecurity Tasmania, but it’s not something you can watch live.
Ms HOWLETT ‑ I’ll hand you over to Rae. Felicity Richards and the task force have done an incredible amount of work on this and I thank them for all the work they have achieved. I just want to put that on record. I’ll hand you over to Rae.
CHAIR – The question is about how often the CCTV footage is looked at, thank you, and that’s the only question.
Ms BURROWS ‑ Through you, minister, the TQM video cameras were in place before all this happened, and as I mentioned before, it is audited by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. It’s an export accredited facility, so it is the federal department’s responsibility to check that. As with all –
Ms O’CONNOR – Isn’t it our responsibility as well under the Animal Welfare Act, with respect, Rae?
Ms BURROWS – No, it’s an exporter, so it’s a DAFF responsibility.
Ms O’CONNOR – Are they exempt from Tasmanian animal welfare laws?
Ms WILSON – If DAFF was to identify anything that required an investigation, they would refer it to the appropriate authorities.
Ms O’CONNOR – Sorry, last question. Is no‑one in Tasmania looking at the CCTV footage at Tasmanian Quality Meats? Who’s looking at the footage? We just got a shrug from the deputy secretary.
Ms HOWLETT – We love naming people in this place, don’t we. Name and shame.
Ms BURROWS – The footage for the other domestic abattoirs and processing facilities, as you know, the VMS guidelines were only made mandatory on 30 June. We are trying to make it so that we can look at whatever sections we like in real‑time. We’re having some problems with the software. At the moment, they have to provide us with whatever footage we want. We can say we want 1 September to 5 September between these hours and they must provide it to us. That’s part of the announced and unannounced visits. I do apologise, I recognise that I should have mentioned that when you asked the question before, but I got carried away on something else.
Ms O’CONNOR – You’re doing beautifully, Rae. Just to confirm, Tasmanian Quality Meats’ CCTV footage is not looked at by Biosecurity Tasmania?
CHAIR – At this point in time.
Ms BURROWS – Unless DAFF refers to us and says, ‘we think we have a problem’. They will refer to us and we will work with them.
Ms O’CONNOR – Extraordinary. I guess it pays to be a Font client.
Ms HOWLETT – Ms O’Connor, I think you should withdraw that comment.
Ms O’CONNOR – No.
Ms HOWLETT – I really do.
Ms O’CONNOR – Not a chance.
Ms WILSON – To be clear, we can access the site.
Ms O’CONNOR – But you haven’t.
Ms WILSON – No. We were there on 15 August. We will have the capacity to inspect, but as Ms Burrows has said, it’s a DAFF accredited site. They have a person on site.
Ms O’CONNOR – Do they?
Ms HOWLETT – Yes, and they’re not the only DAFF accredited site.
Ms O’CONNOR – Full‑time on site?
Ms BURROWS – Part of their accreditation through the Commonwealth is they must have a vet on‑site all the time and they also must have animal welfare officers. I’m not sure how many, but they definitely have to have a vet on site.
Ms O’CONNOR – Did they have a vet on‑site during this footage?
CHAIR – Question for the federal government.
Ms HOWLETT – Correct.
Ms O’CONNOR – I don’t think the vet on‑site helped for this particular issue at the time.
CHAIR – Order. It’s not a question. Thank you very much, minister. We will take a break. Thank you very much to those who have provided input into this afternoon’s session. The committee very much appreciates it.
We will suspend while we move to Racing Regulation. Thank you to those who are leaving us. About five minutes and that will give anyone time for a break. Thank you.
