The recent launch of the WA Sheep Industry Roadmap has generated considerable discussion across the sector, and rightly so.
A significant amount of work has clearly gone into developing the road map and bringing industry participants together to discuss the future of the industry.
However, after listening to the presentations and reflecting on the discussions that followed, I was left with one overriding question:
What does success look like for the WA sheep industry?
Much of the focus remained on explaining how the industry arrived at its current position.
The challenges are real and well understood.
Declining flock numbers.
Increasing competition between sheep enterprises and cropping for land, capital and profitability.
Processor profitability and capacity.
Market volatility.
Policy uncertainty.
None of these issues should be underestimated.
However, the bigger question is not whether these challenges exist.
The bigger question is what we intend to do about them.
What is the current WA flock size?
What should it be in 10 years time?
Ten million, 12 or 15 million sheep?
What is the target, and how will we measure progress along the way?
Importantly, producers will not increase flock numbers simply because they are encouraged to do so.
Flock rebuilding will occur when the economics make sense.
Sheep and wool must compete with alternative enterprises for investment, and producers need confidence that profitability is sustainable and that long-term returns justify that investment.
One issue that I believe deserves far greater attention is competition.
Regardless of individual views on live sheep exports, the trade provided competition within the WA sheep market.
Competition for livestock, procurement or price discovery.
As the industry adjusts to its removal, we should be asking how that competitive tension is replaced.
Because competition drives investment, competition and growth.
Without competition, industries rarely expand.
I was also left questioning some of the commentary around the movement of WA lambs into Eastern States supply chains.
Part of the explanation focused on freight advantages enjoyed by Victorian processors when exporting chilled product into international markets.
While freight efficiencies undoubtedly play a role, I am not convinced that explanation fully accounts for what we are seeing.
The cost of purchasing lambs in WA and transporting them east is substantial.
If Eastern States feedlots and supply chains are prepared to absorb those costs and remain commercially competitive, perhaps there are broader factors at play around future supply expectations, procurement strategies and long-term confidence in sheep and lamb markets.
Another area that deserves continued attention is forward marketing and risk management.
Too often the discussion focuses on why it is difficult.
Of course it is difficult.
So is every meaningful form of risk management.
Grain growers and wool exporters manage risk.
Businesses manage risk every day.
The existence of risk is not a reason to avoid innovation. In many cases, it is the reason innovation becomes necessary.
At AGORA Livestock, we have spent years investing in practical solutions around market transparency, procurement, data analytics and forward marketing.
Importantly, that work has been undertaken without direct government funding or industry support programs.
Despite that, AGORA’s user base continues to grow strongly, reinforcing our belief that producers, agents, processors and feedlots are actively seeking practical tools that improve transparency, confidence and decision-making.
As a team, we are extremely proud of what has been achieved through private investment, industry engagement and a commitment to building practical solutions.
The road map is an important starting point.
But the next stage of the discussion must be bigger than simply identifying challenges.
It must define success.
It must establish measurable objectives.
And it must create the conditions that encourage investment, confidence and growth.
Because ultimately, the future of the WA sheep industry will not be determined by how well we describe the challenges we face.
It will be determined by our willingness to address them.