Turning a Pest into Profit: How One Australian Pastoralist Is Using Feral Camels to Feed Pets

Turning a Pest into Profit: How One Australian Pastoralist Is Using Feral Camels to Feed Pets

Feral camels are a persistent and costly problem for pastoralists in central Australia, but one Western Australian station owner has found an innovative solution: partnering with a pet food company to turn the pests into a valuable resource.

Tim Carmody, who manages a 400,000-hectare property on the edge of the Gibson Desert, has been battling feral camels for years. These animals are a nationally declared pest, causing significant damage to infrastructure and vegetation. The Western Australian Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development estimates there are over 1 million feral camels roaming central Australia.

For Mr. Carmody, the cost of managing camel numbers can reach between $20,000 and $30,000 annually. "They can eat 80 per cent of the vegetation out here, so they're direct competitors to cattle," he explains. "One camel unit is equal to two cow units, so if you've got 500 camels coming through, that's equal to 1,000 head of cattle wandering through your place."

To combat this, Mr. Carmody has formed a partnership with Albany-based Paul's Pet Foods. The company uses a mobile slaughter plant to harvest feral camels on his property, turning them into pet food. Mr. Carmody assists by flying his plane to spot camels and guide ground shooters, allowing them to cull large mobs efficiently.

Ethan Sylvester from Paul's Pet Foods says the demand for camel meat is growing, particularly among pet owners seeking low-allergen alternatives for dogs with skin allergies. "Kangaroo is still top of the list, but camel has pretty much overtaken beef. It's doing incredibly well," he says. Since 2022, production has increased by 20 per cent each year, with up to 250 camels culled annually.

The benefits are twofold: it helps control the feral camel population while providing a sustainable income source. Mr. Carmody notes, "We just recover costs. We've been working at and hoping over the years that this will become more of a commercial operation for everyone involved and once it becomes a commercial operation it becomes sustainable, then there's no more problem with camel."

One satisfied customer is Jodie Muir Mahuika Fitzpatrick, whose dog Hades suffered from severe skin irritations. After switching to a camel meat diet, Hades' condition improved dramatically. Veterinarian Shey Rogers often recommends camel meat as a novel protein source for dogs with allergies, using it as a diagnostic tool to identify triggers.

This innovative approach not only addresses a significant environmental and economic issue but also provides a healthy product for pets. As Dr. Rogers says, "If we're helping solve a feral camel problem and making use of that meat, I think it's fantastic."