AUSTRALIA is considering signing a global pledge to reduce its methane emissions, however the Agriculture Minister has ruled out a New Zealand-style tax on farmers.
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The United States-led pledge would see countries commit to reducing methane emmissions by 30 per cent by 2030.
The pledge would be an aspirational goal rather than a binding target, but farmers are alarmed the interest has coincided with New Zealand's proposal to tax the greenhouse gases of farm animals.
Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said although the government was "certainly considering" signing the pledge, he firmly ruled out a NZ-style tax on farmers
"We have no plans to introduce that sort of a system in Australia," Mr Watt said
I should make the point that it's already been signed up to by about 120 other countries, including some of the biggest beef-producing countries in the world, like the US and Argentina, and the sky hasn't fallen in for those countries
"New Zealand has a very different system where methane emissions are the bulk of their overall emissions in the country. They have decided to take more drastic measures than what we need to be looking at here."
"Less available meat as Labor tries to lower methane will cost Australians at the grocery store," Mr Littleproud said.
"We do not want to see the Aussie barbecue available to only the rich - we urge Labor to reject the methane madness idea."
Mr Watt dismissed claims from the Nationals signing the pledge would make food more expensive - he labelled a scare campaign - and ridiculed former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce who claimed every cow in Australia would have to be shot.
"These are the same people who said that we'd be paying $100 for a roast, a lamb roast [if a carbon tax was introduced]," Mr Watt said.
"Our country has been held back for 10 years by the hyperbole and scare campaigns of the people who are now starting to do it again.
"The industry wouldn't be looking at moving towards carbon-neutral meat production if they weren't comfortable that the industry would be sustainable and viable."