While the Wool Industry Bickers and the Government Buries Its Head in the Sand, 10 Million More Lambs Suffer
Open Letter from Australian animal organisations on behalf of Australian sheep
Sydney, 17 September 2025 - It’s now been twenty-one years since the wool industry promised to phase out live lamb cutting (mulesing). That promise was supposed to be fulfilled by 2010. Instead? Broken. Ignored. Forgotten. And while industry leaders squabble and the government continues to ignore its critical role in protecting animals, supporting farmers, and safeguarding trade, another 10 million lambs have endured the agony of live lamb cutting this year alone.
In response, 10 leading animal welfare organisations from across Australia and the globe have joined forces to pen an Open Letter to all Australian State and Territory Agriculture Ministers and the Federal Minister for Agriculture, calling for leadership in the transition away from live lamb cutting.
Open Letter to All State and Territory Agriculture Ministers and the Federal Minister for Agriculture
This month marks twenty-one years since the Australian wool industry promised to phase out live lamb cutting (mulesing). That promise, to be delivered by 2010, was broken. We call on governments to legislate a phase out of live lamb cutting by 2030.
Australia is now the last country in the world still routinely mutilating lambs in this way. That’s not leadership, that’s a national failure.
One year ago today, FOUR PAWS joined forces with the Australian Alliance for Animals and Humane World for Animals to launch The Broken Promise report, exposing the wool industry’s failure to end this cruel practice. Since then, the silence from government has been deafening and the suffering has continued.
Program Manager for Animal Welfare at Humane World for Animals, Georgie Dolphin, said, “Calls for an end to live lamb cutting have never been stronger. Phasing out this socially unacceptable lamb mutilation in favour of the proven solution—breeding plain-bodied sheep with natural flystrike protection—would end this. Governments must step in before millions more lambs needlessly suffer this outdated practice that sets Australia apart as the only country producing the most painful wool in the world.”
Global brands like H&M, Nike, Zara and Australian brands like Country Road, and Target have already turned their backs on live lamb cut wool. Consumers are demanding better. Markets are shifting. And still, Australia clings to a practice that’s not only cruel but economically reckless.
“Twenty-one years of broken promises is twenty-one years too many,” Ward added. “Every year of delay means another 10 million lambs suffer. If the government won’t lead, then it’s time for the public and the global market to force their hand.”
Elise Burgess
Head of CommunicationsM: 0423 873 382
FOUR PAWS Australia
GPO Box 2845
SYDNEY NSW 2001
Main Phone: 1800 454 228
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About FOUR PAWS
FOUR PAWS is the global animal welfare organisation for animals under direct human influence, which reveals suffering, rescues animals in need and protects them.
Founded in 1988 in Vienna by Heli Dungler and friends, the organisation advocates for a world where humans treat animals with respect, empathy and understanding. The sustainable campaigns and projects of FOUR PAWS focus on companion animals including stray dogs and cats, animals in fashion, farm animals, and wild animals – such as bears, big cats, and orangutans – kept in inappropriate conditions as well as in disaster and conflict zones.
With offices in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Kosovo, the Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, the UK, the USA, and Vietnam as well as sanctuaries for rescued animals in eleven countries, FOUR PAWS provides rapid help and long-term solutions. www.four-paws.org.au