The Pastoralists and Graziers Association is supporting a ban on live exports of cattle at risk of carrying bovine Johne's disease, despite admitting it is a blow for the industry.
According to thewest.com.au, the Department of Agriculture and Food WA has traced 476 bulls from a Queensland property where BJD has been detected to six stations in the Kimberley.
Mustering has started on the stations to find the bulls so they can be slaughtered and tested.
Consequently, an export ban has been introduced to protect key markets, especially Indonesia which is expected to import 267,000 of the 550,000 head of cattle shipped out of Australia this year.
The president of the Association said the ban is a blow for the industry, but necessary to protect its reputation in the long term.
"At this stage we do need the restrictions because Indonesia is BJD-sensitive and if we were to do the wrong thing there we might damage that market there much more in the long term," he said.