Australia-Proposed new costs for meat trade and live shippers.

AUSTRALIA-FURY OVER NEW FEES TO LIVE SHIPPERS.

LIVE exporters and processors are calling on a more efficient export certification process after the Federal Government announced it would be dropping a 40 per cent subsidy for the service.

Certification will now revert to a user pays system which industry member say will impose significant costs in a tough economic environment.

Both processors and exporters have called on the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service, which provides certification, to become more efficient to keep costs to a minimum.

The subsidy will be removed on June 30.

WA Livestock Exporters Association chairman John Edwards said the live export industry would be heavily impacted by the dropping of the subsidy and the new fee structure with which it would be replaced.

"Not only is the subsidy going, but certification fees will actually increase by more than 40 per cent," he said.

"The subsidy provided some relief on livestock inspection fees, which can run into tens of thousands of dollars per vessel.

"A 40 per cent subsidy on these fees was reasonably attractive."

Under the new fee structure, shipments of cattle to South East Asia would rise by 30c/head from $1.25 to $1.55, while sheep exports to the Middle East would rise from 12c/head to 20c/head.

Mr Edwards said the higher fees could be a barrier to trade for many companies.

"Certain agricultural commodity exports exports have long depended on the Government’s 40 per cent contribution towards the co-payment of the AQIS agricultural export certification process," he said.

"Many of these commodity exports, one of which is livestock, continues to be strong in the face of the global financial crisis and a removal of the 40 per cent contribution will decrease our competitiveness.

"As far as I am aware, no other country has full cost recovery for export certification."