Meet the SSG: Michael Maxwell

What is your background?

I grew up and went to high school in Narrogin, a medium-sized wheatbelt town in Western Australia.  Although I was a “townie”, I spent a lot of weekends and holidays pretending to be useful on friends’ farms, which were mostly broadacre farming with some livestock (sheep).  Some of my fondest memories revolve around motorbikes and shearing time.  We still have farmers on both sides of my immediate family.

When I came to Perth, I thought I would end up being a research scientist. However, after postgraduate study, I realised it wasn’t for me and I eventually mustered the strength to go back to Uni for a law degree. I’ve worked on combining science and the law ever since, which keeps an otherwise sometimes dry profession much more interesting. 

How did you become involved in sustainability? 

I first became involved in sustainability almost 20 years ago, when I began advising and defending Australian companies with operations in challenging international jurisdictions. 

The practical and legal reality of operating in countries with high levels of corruption, low workplace standards, security or human rights issues, is that the best way to survive and thrive is ultimately by sophisticated and proactive engagement with those challenges across the whole supply chain.  In other words, to strive for continuous improvement and to embrace true sustainability across the whole business. 

It is possible to focus on the economics in the short-term, or to look the other way from what’s happening upstream or downstream to your direct operations, but those overarching issues and obligations don’t go away. My experience has been aimed at helping companies to properly engage with those challenges and affected stakeholders. 

How has your experience as a consultant and lawyer positioned you to contribute to the ABSF and to the sustainability of the beef industry?

Over a decade ago, I started helping Australian industry with animal welfare issues affecting the red meat supply chain, in particular live export.  This was really a natural evolution of helping companies to understand and meet broader international obligations and changing regulatory requirements.

Since then, I have worked with all levels of the red meat supply chain, peak councils, and research and development organisations to not only guide continuous improvement in welfare practices, indicators and outcomes but also to help shape the regulatory environment and to push back on unwarranted criticism or heavy-handed regulation of the industry.

That gives me a unique perspective to understand how controversy can be weaponised against industry and the true value of building sustainability from the ground up based on real substance, whole of value chain scrutiny and transparency - as the ABSF is doing.  I’ve learned those lessons the hard way from troubleshooting for industry over many years.  The trick is to balance the need for continuous improvement with appropriate push back on extreme “knee-jerk” reactions to controversy and regulatory overreach. 

Why is sustainability so important to the Australian red meat sector?

At its highest level, there are few things more important than international food security and red meat is such a valuable source of protein. Its central importance is overtly recognised and protected in the ambitious carbon emission targets being set internationally to drive change and achieve environmental outcomes that avert catastrophe. 

International expectations have moved beyond the traditional focus on price, product quality and safety.  Market access is rapidly becoming more and more dependent on having demonstrably impressive sustainability credentials across the entire value chain, or at the very least an awareness and clear plan to improve in that respect. 

Australia’s prosperity depends heavily on regional productivity and I think the importance of the red meat industry to regional communities cannot be overstated.  We should not forget that a critical part of being sustainable is to look after the people involved in the industry and to enhance the communities in which business operates. 

What are our greatest opportunities?

Australian agribusiness is a world leader in so many ways. That absolutely holds true for the entire red meat value chain, including in the sophistication and transparency of the ABSF as well as more broadly in improved sustainable practices for those parts of the industry that have traditionally been considered controversial.

As market access sustainability obligations evolve and ESG reporting standards continually lift the bar, there is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to leverage the sophistication of the ABSF and industry best practice to increase international market share, grow our regions, mitigate climate change, and help feed the world.

Anything else you think it is important to mention…

Although we all face enormous challenges in coming decades to be sustainable in our work and private lives, I am ultimately optimistic about the future sustainability of the red meat industry in Australia. I am confident the ABSF will continue to play an increasingly significant part in helping to ensure that the industry thrives.