About 250 people have marched against live animal exports in Adelaide in an attempt to put animal welfare on the election agenda.

The rally comes as the RSPCA calls for the suspension of the live cattle trade after the release of footage which appears to show Australian cattle being bludgeoned to death with a sledgehammer in a Vietnamese abattoir.

The Animal Justice Party (AJP) organised rally which was staged on the steps of South Australia Parliament on Saturday morning.

The party's number one South Australian Senate candidate, Tania Noble, said there were strong feelings in the community about the live export trade.

"People are sick and tired of being fobbed off by politicians when they express their concern about animal cruelty, especially after the latest outrage in Vietnam," Ms Noble said.

"Politicians ignored these concerns at their peril, and nowhere will this be clearer than in the marginal seat of Hindmarsh."

She said AJP was the only party to acknowledge "meat production as a major source of greenhouse gas emissions".

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce ruled out a live export ban this week after the release of the footage.

This week Australian Livestock Exporter's Council (ALEC) chief executive Alison Penfold described the footage from inside the Vietnamese abattoir as sickening.

"No amount of times watching those animals suffer will lessen how sick and disgusting it is and makes me feel," she said.

The council said it would begin a three-month inquiry into traceability and control practices of animal welfare requirements in Vietnam.