Sheep farmers' live sheep export ban post attracts election attention
April 27 2025
ABC News.
In short:
A West Australian farming couple's social media post explaining the impact of the 2028 live sheep export ban has been re-shared thousands of times.
Chrissie and Grant Smith posted the response on Facebook after being asked if farmers were "over-dramatising" the ban.
What's next?
Both sides of the live sheep export debate are targeting key electorates in the lead-up to election day.
Veteran sheep farmers Grant and Chrissie Smith never set out to achieve social media fame.
But a Facebook post from the couple, who farm at Kojonup in Western Australia's Great Southern, explaining the practical impact of the looming ban on live sheep exports has gained them unexpected attention.
The premise was simple — they wanted readers to go to their fridge and remove all the items they relied on farmers for, leaving it all but empty.
The post has been circulated thousands of times, leading them to join the campaign to overturn the Labor government and its impending ban on the live sheep trade from 2028.
"Someone asked me to put into perspective if farmers were over-dramatising the ban," Ms Smith said.
"I went home to Grant and said, 'We need to answer this question as honestly and authentically as we can to give people an understanding of what we do.'"
An overhead shot of a man and a woman standing in a yard filled with sheep.
The Smiths say Australian farmers are leaders in animal welfare standards.
The Smiths sell sheep directly to meat processors, relying on exporters to buy their surplus stock.
"Our passion is producing food, that's what it comes down to. All farmers — whether it's beef, lamb or grain —produce food and that's what we love," Mr Smith said.
"I think the general public and politicians have lost sight of the fact that's what we do."
Mr Smith said the viral post could be seen as a plea to Australians to think about how often they relied on a farmer.
"Did Albanese for a second think about how this is going to affect us and Australian farmers?"
A woman on a farm walking away from the camera into a pen of sheep.
The couple say they want Australians to think carefully about their vote.
One final push
After delivering a majority government to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in 2022, Western Australia could play a similar decisive role on Saturday.
After a sharp swing against Labor at last month's state election, driven by the government's poor performance on regional issues, supporters of live exports have turned their attention and resources to critical electorates in Perth.
A sign reading Keep the Sheep in front of a table covered in flyers.
Keep the Sheep is campaigning to overturn the current Labor government.
Veterinarian and Keep the Sheep campaigner Holly Ludeman said the campaign was encouraging country residents to lobby friends and family in key seats.
A female speaks to another female who holds a flyer.
Holly Ludeman says she is confident the Coalition will reverse the ban. (ABC South West: Kate Forrester)
"We are in the final quarter and we can't back down; this is one issue that is going to be on people's mind come election day," Dr Ludeman said.
"I'm really sad this is such an election issue — it just shouldn't be."
The vet, who contested Liberal preselection for the seat of Bullwinkel, said significant improvements had been made to animal welfare in recent years and opponents were relying on outdated arguments.
"It's a very simple argument to say ban the trade and use the heartstrings of outdated footage — the activist's argument is very simple," Ms Ludeman said.
"The reality of the trade is so complex."
'This is law'
Anti-live export campaigner Lisa Baker said she was not worried about the potential of the ban being overturned, since it was legislated in parliament last year.
However, the former state Labor MP is still rallying to make sure the Australian public takes its vote seriously.
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