Aulds Stock Removals no longer picking up dead stock

It was a win-win for the livestock industry but now a major knackery has been curtailed. And it’s causing headaches for farmers.

Livestock producers are stressing the importance of knackeries and their ability to take dead stock after one of northern Victoria’s major operators stopped pick ups last week.

Aulds Stock Removals at Stanhope will no longer accept dead animals but is still attending farms to destroy cattle and take them away.

Aulds is part of Campaspe Meat Company and director Loc Rivett said they had made the decision to stop taking dead animals due to improvement notices issued by the Environment Protection Authority.

They were working through the improvement notices, and had spent $1m to rubber line an effluent dam, but had received quotes of another $10m to deal with potential anthrax issues.

Mr Rivett said the Stanhope site usually processed about 20,000 cows a year, half of which were deceased before they were picked up.

Of these, about 10 per cent, or about 1000, were suitable for pet food with the remainder sent for rendering. About 80 per cent of the cows the company processes are from dairy operations.

Mr Rivett said he was now forwarding calls to pick up dead cows to other operators in the area, but their smaller operations may not be able to cope.

“There is a real issue here for the industry – we need a dedicated rendering works for dead animals,” he said.
A spokesman for Victoria’s Environment Protection Authority said the EPA had issued a notice to Campaspe Meats “that requires them to develop a management plan for sludge at their site”.

“The notice does not require them to cease their operations,” the EPA spokesman said.

VFF Livestock President Scott Young PICTURE: ZOE PHILLIPS

Victorian Farmers Federation livestock group president Scott Young said a lack of knackery services was a risk to the whole livestock supply chain.

“The industry needs to work on a long-term solution to dispose of stock that have no commercial value, and for farmers who have no way of disposing of dead stock,” he said.
Northern Victoria farmer Bridget Goulding said the managers of the knackery were doing their best and it was the responsibility of the government to clear bureaucratic roadblocks.

“Clearly they’ve made this decision because the current government rulings make life difficult for them to continue as normal,” she said.

“Many of us are reliant on the knackery for disposing dead livestock in this way – it’s not always practical or safe to bury on the farm.”