A container ship containing 43 crew members and 5,867 live cattle from New Zealand capsized in the East China Sea has raised concerns regarding the live export trade of animals.
The Gulf Livestock 1 overturned in early September after its engine failed during a typhoon. Two crew members were found, but the only surviving crew member is a Filipino chief officer.
“As a result of the recent loss at sea, the Ministry for Primary Industries has put a temporary hold on live export,” New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said at a news conference earlier this month. “Those were cattle that were going for breeding purposes into Asia—that has been halted for now while, of course, investigations are underway as to what has happened in this situation.”
Any shipments for slaughter require the approval of the Ministry for Primary Industries. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Winston Peters said to the New Zealand Herald a complete halt on cattle exports in the future was not the answer.
A government review of the live export trade is not expected to be released until after the country’s elections, and there is no decision whether the trade should be banned until then. New Zealand exported $36 million of livestock in 2019.
