Low-allergenic camel meat helps curb feral population

Managing feral camel populations in central Australia poses a significant challenge for pastoralists, with the animals damaging vital infrastructure like cattle water points and trampling vegetation. Tim Carmody, who manages a 400,000-hectare property on the edge of the Gibson Desert, estimates the cost of controlling camel numbers on his land can reach $20,000 to $30,000 annually. He notes that camels are direct competitors to cattle, with one camel unit equivalent to two cow units.

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They can eat 80 per cent of the vegetation out here, so they're direct competitors to cattle.

Carmody has partnered with a pet food business to commercially harvest the camels. He uses his plane to spot herds and guide ground crews, enabling them to cull large numbers efficiently. The goal is to recover costs and make camel harvesting a sustainable commercial operation, which would ultimately resolve the problem. "Long-term it's better for the country if camel are either cleaned out 100 percent, or they're commercial and have value," Carmody stated.

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One camel unit is equal to two cow units, so if you've got 500 camel coming through, that's equal to 1,000 head of cattle wandering through your place and at times we can have several thousand.

The demand for low-allergenic camel meat in pet food has created a win-win situation. Ethan Sylvester of Paul's Pet Foods reported his visit to Carmody's property was his most successful cull yet, yielding 77 animals. His business has seen a 20 percent annual increase in production since 2022, now culling up to 250 camels per year. Camel meat is becoming increasingly popular, surpassing beef in demand and growing steadily, according to Sylvester.

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Long-term it's better for the country if camel are either cleaned out 100 percent, or they're commercial and have value.