Australian red meat producers - Our environment. Our commitment
27/03/2009
Coinciding with the popular worldwide 'Earth Hour' event this Saturday, 28 March, Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) will launch a campaign to promote the environmental credentials of the Australian sheep and cattle industry.
Environmentalists in the true sense of the word, Australia's red meat producers are renowned for no nonsense, practical solutions and it is vital that this is communicated to metropolitan audiences according to MLA Chairman and fifth generation North Queensland cattle producer, Don Heatley.
"Protecting the environment is a priority for the Australian red meat industry and a vital part of maintaining its ongoing sustainability," Mr Heatley said.
"Ongoing communications, including advertising, will be targeted at urban audiences; those who are often not as familiar with livestock production and what happens on a working property.
"A central plank of the campaign will be the use of producer case studies, to let producers themselves tell of the wealth of environmental work occurring and allowing them to demonstrate the positive environmental credentials of Australia's sheep and cattle industries."
A snapshot of key environmental facts about Australia's livestock industry includes:
Water usage
• Using the Australian Bureau of Statistics definition of water use, it only takes between 60 litres to 320 litres of water to produce a kilogram of beef, depending on the production system.
• The overwhelming majority of water used to raise livestock is not diverted and is naturally sourced. Given that most beef production in Australia is carried out in areas that are not suitable for other forms of food production and is far from major population centres, the water used to raise Australian cattle is generally not available for any other use.
Greenhouse emissions
• According to the Australian Greenhouse Office, Australia's livestock emissions have reduced by 7.5 percent since the Kyoto base year of 1990, the only Australian industry to achieve a reduction in emissions.
• MLA, the Federal Government and partnering research organisations are spending more than $50 million on research into soil carbon, livestock methane emissions and other initiatives to minimise the livestock industry's environmental footprint.
Ends
• To view the advertisement click here (PDF, 616KB)
Released by: Nigel Gosse, MLA Media Affairs Manager, ph. 02 9463 9360