Farmers are passionate about the environment in which they raise their livestock. Farming relies on a healthy environment and farmers play an important role as environmental stewards. They also have a strong and vested interest in a low-emissions future because they work in the frontline of Australia's increasingly variable climate and are experiencing more extreme weather events.

At an industry level, stakeholder and customer expectations about Australia's environmental credentials and Australia's commitment to the Paris Agreement make sustainability and climate high priorities as well.

In support of this, the Australian sheep industry is committed to positive environmental outcomes, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Our industry recognises the need for a collaborative and coordinated approach with government, our broader supply chain and customers to meet this goal.

Emissions from the sheep have been in significant decline for the last 15 years and the industry is on track to achieve the government's 43% emission reduction target by 2030.

Research published in 2020 by the CSIRO showed that Australia's sheep meat sector, despite having increased production in the preceding 30 years, was ‘climate neutral’. Meaning that it didn't contribute to further climate change.

A key challenge is that around 80% of emissions produced by the livestock sector are attributed to enteric methane emitted from sheep and there is currently no single solution to significantly address this. Current research into methane reduction initiatives spans genetics, forages and feed supplements to reduce methane emissions.