Live export of sheep across long distances causes severe and well-documented welfare harm. Multiple countries have introduced or are considering bans, driven by overwhelming welfare evidence.
Live export welfare harm is not accidental or unavoidable — it is the direct and predictable consequence of transporting millions of animals across thousands of kilometres under inherently stressful conditions. The documented suffering — heat stroke deaths in the Middle Eastern summer, starvation in animals unable to adapt to unfamiliar feed, crush injuries in overcrowded vessels — represents a systematic welfare failure that industry self-regulation has repeatedly failed to prevent. The refrigerated meat alternative provides equivalent economic value without the welfare cost. The welfare case for banning live export is among the strongest in all of animal agriculture, and the political trajectory across multiple countries reflects this.