THERE has been a livestock saleyard in Warrnambool since 1883, with the current site in Caramut Road established in 1970.

I have very actively followed the demise of the South West Victoria Livestock Exchange (SWVLX), commonly called the Warrnambool saleyards, for decades now. To be clear – over all that time I always thought that the Warrnambool City Council could not see the value in keeping the facility. Call me a cynic if you will; but I think it was always the plan to run the facility down in order to get rid of it.

Members of the Warrnambool Saleyards Advisory Board have been advocating for the proceeds of the yard fees paid by farmers to be reinvested into infrastructure maintenance for decades, but the requests have always been rejected. The facility, as it stood, met minimum standards of operation, but failed to keep pace with newer facilities.

Owen O’Keefe was a member of the Warrnambool Saleyards Advisory Board.

I caught up with him to get his take on what the loss means to farmers, agents and Warrnambool businesses.

Mr O’Keefe was incredibly angry at the closure of the SWVLX.

“Going back 10 years ago, just after that big public meeting – the council virtually gave a commitment that they were going to upgrade the facility, but every-time we asked them for money during our committee meetings with council – there was always a reason why it couldn’t happen. The argument was that they had to spend money on other unexpected things – there was always a reason that that would not spend money on the yards.”

Mr O’Keefe said: “They (WCC) said that it was too run down to fix, but that is complete and utter rubbish – we couldn’t even get rails fixed, simple things like that. They just weren’t interested.”

He said it was a place of social interaction with other farmers, transporters and members of associated industries.

“You could catch up with people that you wouldn’t otherwise see very often – you could have a coffee and a yarn. I am not into sport and don’t have any real interests other than farming – so I will definitely miss the camaraderie.”

WCC Communications Officer Nick Higgins replied to some questions that I had for the council.

JF: There have been calls for upgrades to the facility for decades from the Livestock Advisory Board, but the WCC have failed to invest in its infrastructure (long before the Mortlake Saleyards were built) – why is that?

NH: For over a decade Council had held concerns about the long-term viability of the saleyards at the Caramut Road location. Several years ago, Council sought expressions of interest from livestock exchange operators to ascertain whether a new saleyards facility could be established outside the city’s urban area. Despite some interest no proposal came to fruition.  Council then decided to invest in a substantial upgrade at the saleyards including the installation of a large roof over a section of the yards along with associated infrastructure including soft flooring and stormwater capture.

JF: What impact do you think the closure of Warrnambool's Livestock Exchange will have on the Warrnambool Business Economy?

NH: The projected impact on the Warrnambool economy was detailed in the report to Council on November 7, 2022.

 The Full report is available on WCC Website  at www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/sites/warrnambool.vic.gov.au/files/2022-11/2022-11-07%20ATTACHMENTS%20Council%20meeting.pdf

 In summary: The SWVLX is estimated to contribute $10.4 million in business revenues (output) for the Warrnambool LGA (Local Government Area), generating $5.4 million in Gross Regional Product (GRP) and supporting 56.0 FTEs (full-time equivalent), which pay $3.6 million (included in the $10.4 million) in wages and salaries in 2021- 22 (directly and indirectly).

The economic activity supported by the SWVLX in 2021-22 represented 75.9% of activity supported by the saleyards in 2007-08.

For relativity, jobs supported by the SWVLX represents 0.31% of total jobs in Warrnambool LGA and GRP supported represents 0.22% of total GRP in the LGA

JF: What does WCC plan to do with the site?

NH: The priorities of the land use study are still being determined. The initial focus will be consideration of environmental factors that will provide insights into the rehabilitation required. While options for the land may be identified next year, it may not immediately be available for alternative uses as there will be other formal planning processes and community consultation to be undertaken.

JF: What were the main reasons WCC decided to close the Livestock Exchange?

NH: 1. It was considered unlikely that the required cattle throughput to break even financially could be achieved.

See the independent financial assessment and modelling www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/sites/warrnambool.vic.gov.au/files/2022-11/2022-11-07%20ATTACHMENTS%20Council%20meeting.pdf

2. A private business had established an alternative selling centre close by.

3. The expansion of Warrnambool’s residential area meant the saleyards could not remain at Caramut Road in the long-term.

 JF: This leaves me with a number of unanswered questions, that I did not put to Mr Higgins:

The Caramut Road saleyard site was built in 1970 and put on the outskirts of town, so who re-zoned the area and allowed for housing to be built around the saleyard in the years since 1970? Who allowed a sporting facility to be built right next to a livestock saleyard? Who decided that the only profitable council owned facility would not be funded and maintained, to keep pace with modern standards in livestock saleyards?

So, if agricultural type businesses leave Warrnambool for areas like Mortlake – where there is room for business expansion and probable support from neighbouring councils – then who would be responsible for that? So many questions and only one answer.

Note – you can also watch or listen online to the WCC meeting where the issue was debated and voted on, at www.warrnambool.vic.gov.au/meeting/7-november-2022