Officials worked on live export ‘gold standard’ despite govt ban

Hours were spent workshopping and piloting a ‘gold standard’ for live exports despite full knowledge a ban was soon to come into effect, according to minutes from a Ministry for Primary Industries working group.
The term ‘gold standard’ is used by those in the live export industry to describe a scenario where minimum animal welfare standards are upheld during sea travel, but many animal welfare experts say such a standard is mythical.