Australia eyes selling live cattle to China

Australia is setting its sights on winning a major prize for its beef industry by persuading China to open its market to live cattle sales.

China and Australia are keen to finally commence live cattle trading, having seen a 1998 deal fail because of regulatory issues, Reuters reported Monday, citing Australian officials.

Chinese officials visited Australia in March to discuss live cattle trade issues, and with Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott in Beijing last week for free trade deal talks, hopes of mustering cattle for China one day are rising.

Cattle baron Graeme Acton, Australia's largest rancher, has his sights on Asia's expanding market.

"Live cattle would be a highly lucrative market for us... I think it would complement the boxed beef market, which has grown into a massive market for us in just the last year," said Acton.

But the dream of cracking the Chinese live trade market has been illusive. Biosecurity concerns, raised by the Chinese delegation in March, are seen as one of the stumbling blocks.

"The Chinese technical -delegation were here to discuss some of the health concerns they have... and hopefully we will be able to find a resolution where we can export cattle to China," said Alison Penfold, chief executive of Australian Live Export Council.

Importing live cattle would not only be a windfall for outback ranchers, but make economic sense for China, with abattoirs there running at only 30 percent of capacity, say beef industry firms.

"There is a clear benefit for the Chinese to use excess capacity. Their labor costs are still significantly lower in the processing sector than Australia," said Craig Aldous, China-based general manager at Elders Fine Foods.