WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest
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CONTENTS
National Residue Survey (Ratite Slaughter) Levy Bill
1997
Date Introduced: 26 March 1997
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Primary Industries and Energy
Commencement: 1 July 1997
To impose a levy on the slaughter at an abattoir of emu,
cassowary, kiwi, rhea and ostrich (ratites) at an abattoir intended
for human consumption. Levy proceeds will go towards the monitoring
and assessment of chemical residues in ratites.
Emu Industry
The major effect of the Bill is to impose an operative levy of
75 cents per head on the slaughter at an abattoir of emus intended
for human consumption.
The emu is a native flightless bird. Emus grow to a maximum
height of 2 metres and 50 kilograms in weight. Emu farming was
pioneered by the Ngangganawili Aboriginal people in Western
Australia in 1976 using stock taken from the wild. Wild emus are
not used commercially in Australia.
Western Australia has the largest number of birds in production,
an estimated total of 25,000 across 55 properties. Industry
estimates for 1995 report that 155,000 birds from Western
Australia, Queensland and Tasmania were processed.(1)
Emu products include meat, skins and oil. Emu meat is low in fat
and cholesterol (0.05% cholesterol) and is sold to the restaurant
trade as a low fat gourmet food. Emus can also be rendered to
produce an oil, which is used in cosmetics, as an
anti-inflammatory, and treatment for muscle and joint pain. Raw emu
oil has been sold in bulk at prices of approximately $14.50 per
litre.(2)
Tanned emu skin is used in a variety of products, including
fashion clothing, watch bands, wallets and other accessory
goods.
While the rural press has reported extensively on the successes
and failures of the Australian ostrich industry, only recently has
the emu industry attracted attention. For example, it is reported
in the January 1996 edition of the Australian Farm Journal that the
President of the Emu Farmers Federation of Australia, Burditt
Krost, said:
[T]he industry's biggest problems is its lack of processing
infrastructure, particularly in the eastern states. ... total world
emu meat, oil and leather production is now so tiny - 200 tonnes of
meat, about 80,000 litres of oil and enough leather to make 4200
men's jackets from the slaughter of about 20,000 birds - that
marketing shouldn't pose a major problem. Although the US has many
more emu farms than Australia (6000 compared with 1297), the birds
are still too expensive to slaughter. So Australia is likely to
have a free hand on world markets for about another seven
years.
It is reported in The Land of 5 September 1996 that a proposed
$4 million emu abattoir, which includes a tannery and rendering
plant, at Cobar in New South Wales, has been approved by the State
government. The abattoir will be the first emu abattoir in New
South Wales and will process 400 birds a day, with meat, skin and
oil exported.
While the above reports forecast an optimistic future for the
industry, it needs to be acknowledged that there is no shortage of
commentators who view the future of the industry with a degree of
scepticism. For example, it is reported in The Sydney Morning
Herald of 20 November 1996 that the Director of the New South Wales
Farmer's Association said:
[I]f the end product has no sustainable market, "the investment
excitement only lasts for the initial breeding stages".
In the same article, it is reported:
NSW Farmers has warned investors "to look at the end product
market, and not at the short-term profit from selling breeding
stock". The ostrich industry is a case in point. From a market high
of about $6,000 for three month old chicks 12 months ago,
commercial reality has hit home, with the same birds now worth only
$200, say the Australian Ostrich Association, agents and
breeders.
National Residue Survey
The National Residue Survey (NRS) monitors residues of
agricultural and veterinary chemicals in raw agricultural produce
in order to meet national and international requirements (eg. Since
1985 a national residue monitoring program and certification has
been a mandatory requirement for nations exporting meat and poultry
products to the United States).
Funds for the NRS are provided from five sources:
- levies paid by participating industries along with any
associated income earned from short-term investment of funds held
in reserve;
- funding appropriated by government for NRS government business
activities;
- direct contributions;
- interest earned on short term investments; and
- payments for proficiency testing, sale of services or prepared
materials, and from fees charged for the supply of
information.(3)
The term 'ratite' is defined by clause 4 to
mean an emu, ostrich, cassowary, kiwi or rhea.
A levy, the National Residue Survey Levy, is imposed on the
slaughter at an abattoir of ratites intended for human consumption
by clause 5.
Clause 6 deals with the rate of levy for
ratites. The operative rate of levy imposed in respect to emus is
75 cents per head or a prescribed amount not exceeding $5.00 per
head. The rates of levy in respect of other ratites is a prescribed
amount not exceeding $5.00 per head.
The levy is payable by the person who owns the ratites when they
are slaughtered (clause 7).
- Diverse Farming, March 1997: 29.
- Australian Farmers Federation, Australian Agriculture, 5th ed,
1995: 169.
- National Residue Survey, Annual Report 1995 96: 10.
Ian Ireland
17 June 1997
Bills Digest Service
Information and Research Services
This Digest does not have any official legal status. Other
sources should be consulted to determine whether the Bill has been
enacted and, if so, whether the subsequent Act reflects further
amendments.
IRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents
with Senators and Members and their staff but not with members of
the public.
ISSN 1328-8091
© Commonwealth of Australia 1997
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Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library,
1997.
This page was prepared by the Parliamentary Library,
Commonwealth of Australia
Last updated: 9 July 1997
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