26/02/2026
It’s hard to put into words how frustrating and heartbreaking it is to watch the slow dismantling of an industry that has supported families, communities and regional Australia for generations.
The Labor Government’s decision to shut down the live sheep export trade has already caused a mass exodus of sheep from Western Australia. Producers have been forced to offload stock, scale back, or walk away entirely. The ripple effects were always going to hit hard — and now we’re seeing it in real time with Beaufort River Meats closing its doors.
This isn’t just about one business. This is about local jobs, local families, and the backbone of small country towns. It’s about the truck drivers, the station hands, the shearers, the processors, and the small businesses that rely on a functioning sheep industry to survive.
What hurts the most is that many of us saw this coming. We spoke up. We warned of the consequences. And now good people are paying the price.
These decisions might look neat on paper in the city, but out here they have real, human consequences. Generations of knowledge, hard work, and livelihoods are being wiped away.
This isn’t politics to us. This is our lives.
Regional Australia deserves better.
Staff will be redeployed or have elected for redundancy packages.
