Australian cattle shipments to Indonesia resume On August 10, 2011

The first shipment of live cattle from Australia's Northern Territory
since the suspension of live exports will leave for Indonesia on
Wednesday.

The agricultural group Elders will load its first
shipment since the Australian Government suspended trade in June, with
3,000 cattle to board a ship in the northern city of Darwin this
morning.

The month-long ban was lifted on July 6, but trade was unable to restart due to a revision of the regulatory framework.

The ship is expected to leave for Indonesia later today.

The
Northern Territory Cattlemen's Association says it gives a glimmer of
hope to an industry that has been crippled by a month-long ban.

Seventy-thousand cattle are predicted to make it to Indonesia before the coming monsoon season, compared to 500,000 last year.

The association's Luke Bowen says the numbers are not promising.

"We need to get things moving as quickly as we can," he said.

"We
need to see another 200,000-plus go into Indonesia before the wet
season hits to get us anywhere near where we were historically, so we've
got a long way to catch up, a lot of ground to make up.

"We know we've got a long way to go."

The association is calling on the Australian Government to provide more assistance to struggling beef producers.

A
suspension in live trade was imposed after graphic footage of animals
being mistreated in Indonesian abattoirs was aired on the ABC's Four
Corners program.