He said Labor would develop a "Strategic Red Meat Industry Plan" to process sheep at Australian abattoirs and export chilled meat overseas. The transition period would be over a number of years but less than a decade.

"We don't want to impose a transition on this sector, we want to work with the farmers and the sector more generally to transition out of live sheep exports in an orderly fashion in a way that creates jobs here, and lifts the stocks of farmers," Mr Fitzgibbon told Sky News.

"So let me be clear, Labor sees a bright future for meat processing, a bright future for jobs in that sector right across the supply chain in the red meat processing sector, a better future for farmers. But Labor sees no future for live sheep exports."

Damaged Jakarta relations

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said Labor had responded to "political sentiment", repeating the same mistake it made under Julia Gillard when it banned live beef exports to Indonesia, devastating the industry and damaging relations with Jakarta.

"What the Labor Party has done today has just shown how reckless they are in protecting the jobs of Australians," he said.

"We should make decisions about our big export industries with the benefit of science and information. We are not going to be making emotional and reckless decisions that will put Australian farmers at risk."

Mr Turnbull said the government was waiting for the McCarthy report but promised action.


"We understand that Australians expect and we should all expect that sheep, cattle or any livestock that is exported, should be done in a humane way, and we are going to ensure that it is. We'll have the standards, the inspectors, everything will be in place to ensure we don't see a repetition of those shocking scenes."

The Australian Livestock Exporters' Council said the industry had already taken steps to reform, including reducing summer stocking densities and agreeing to independent observers on board vessels.

"If live sheep exports were to cease, Australia would be neglecting its responsibility as a world leader in animal welfare and the driver of ongoing improvement of global livestock practices," chief executive Simon Westaway said.

Stop cruelty not trade

Western Australia's peak farm group said Labor should be stopping the cruelty, not the trade.

"The livelihoods of farmers and the health of their communities across the nation would be put at significant risk by a ban, especially so for Western Australian producers who represent 85 per cent of the national trade," WA Farmers president Tony York said.

"We have seen from past experience that a ban on live export is widely destructive to regions and regional communities. We implore those in power not to make the same mistake twice."

Animal rights campaigners Animals Australia and the RSPCA, which on Thursday committed $1 million to help sheep producers, welcomed Labor's pledge.

"Proactively planning for a future without live sheep export, and supporting producers during the transition, makes sense on all fronts," Animals Australia investigator Lyn White said.

"A succession of economic reports have all concluded that a well-managed phase-out will ensure minimal impact on farmers."