Rural Industries Research & Development Corporation

Welcome to the CROCODILE INDUSTRY chapter of RIRDC's major new publication (contents page here) on nearly 100 new rural industries.

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Introduction

Crocodile farming is capital-intensive, long-term and export-orientated. Opportunities exist for market expansion in Asian and Pacific rim countries. The Australian industry is small in terms of world trade and currently supplies about one per cent of the world market. Domestic demand for meat currently exceeds production and the trend for quality leather products is steadily increasing. Production is forecast to more than double in the next five years. Value adding is occurring in Australia through joint venture partnerships with producers and foreign investors.

The small size of the industry, poor availability of breeding stock and the lack of ranching (in Queensland) are seen as limiting the industry's rate of expansion. Vertical integration, using contract growers, offers the industry one avenue for increasing industry numbers.

Zimbabwe, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia are Australia's major competitors. Crocodile farming is as demanding as any other agricultural industry, requiring hard work and an eye for marketing opportunities.

Markets and marketing issues

Australia primarily exports raw or `green' skins for the purposes of processing and manufacturing into high-quality leather goods. `Classic' skins as they are known, are traded in two forms, belly skin and horn-back.

Prices are determined by belly width and the amount of damage to this area. Prices for a 34 cm belly are approximately $AU355 for 1st grade, 2nd grade $266 and $177 for 3rd grade. The export trade is influenced by overseas fashion trends, the Australian dollar exchange rate, market supply and value adding.

The supply of crocodile meat is dictated by the demand for skins and for this reason processing of the meat can be irregular.

Crocodile meat is mainly consumed on the domestic market, principally through restaurants, specialty meat outlets and some large national foodchain stores. Meat retails for between $22 and $27/kg. Demand for crocodile meat exceeds production to the extent that Australia imports meat from Papua New Guinea. Export markets exist in Great Britain, Denmark, Switzerland, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand.

Some of the issues facing the crocodile meat industry include a lack of knowledge by consumers and trade personnel about quality, the nutritional value of the meat and where meat can be purchased. Under current laws meat can only be sold frozen, while market research shows there is a strong demand for chilled crocodile meat. There is also a belief among some consumers and the retail industry that trade in crocodile meat is illegal.

Production requirements

A reliable supply of good quality water either naturally or artificially heated to between 30°C and 32°C is required. Land area requirements are not excessive as crocodile production is intensive farming. For the construction of earth ponds, an impervious base of clay is needed to prevent seepage. Construction of pens in flood-prone areas should be avoided.

Species

Breeding takes place in the wet season, from late October to the end of May or early June. Under farm conditions females mature at 8-10 years, males at
10-12 years. Nest sizes for mature females range from
30 to 60 eggs per nest. Breeding stock can be taken under permit from the wild, taken as `problem' crocodiles or purchased from established farms.

The freshwater crocodile is smaller than the saltie and has a narrower snout. The males grow up to 3 metres in length. Nests are constructed in the cooler time of the year with nest sizes ranging from 10 to 25 eggs. Skins are less valued, as they have osteoderms (bone deposits) in the scales, which make them difficult to manufacture and a they have a larger scale size.

Crocodile husbandry

There is no standard method of rearing crocodiles. Farms have developed systems that suit their own particular establishment and situation. Crocodiles are grown in a variety of pen sizes and designs. Hatchlings (1-12 months old) are generally housed indoors or in covered areas. Pen design for hatchlings range from small Besser-block pens, to tanks constructed of plastic, cement or fibreglass. Each design provides an area of water and land. Ideally, pens should drain and refill independently of one another to minimise disease transmission. Colourbond sandwich panelling provides ideal insulation for fully controlled environmental sheds. Hideboards cover part of the land and water area of the pen and offer young crocodiles an added sense of security.

Grower animals (1-3 years old) are mostly housed outdoors, relying on natural climatic conditions. Pens comprise mainly single water and land areas. Water depth is generally shallow, ranging from 150 to 300 millimetres. Sub adults and adults (4 years +) are housed in deeper, large, open ponds. Smaller colonies with one male to several females are preferred. Also a one-to-one mating system is used.

Typically hatchlings are fed diets of red meat and chicken heads, supplemented with a vitamin and mineral premix. Work is currently under way to develop a pelleted feed which will better suit the nutritional needs of animals. Grower animals are also fed poultry and red-meat based diets. Adults are fed poultry (defeathered), fish, pig and beef.

Incubation time for saltwater crocodiles varies with incubation temperature. At the optimal temperature of 32°C, hatching occurs at about 77 days. Saltwater crocodiles are harvested at 1.5-2 metres in length by which time they are between 2 and 3 years old.

Key messages

• Ensure your source of hatchlings
• Secure market outlets
• Crocodiles take three years to harvest
• Protect skin quality

Pest and disease control

Sick crocodiles often seek out areas of higher temperature.

This action, termed `behavioural fever' raises the body temperature of the animal which helps it to fight an infection. Disease affected animals should be segregated if possible. Generally, hatchlings within 6 months of age are most prone to diseases. Mortalities can be high in some instances. The major problems are nutritional disorders, viral, bacterial, fungal diseases and parasitic infection. Some of these diseases can damage the skin. Disease in older animals is considerably less frequent.

Managing disease outbreaks can often cause stress to the animals and exacerbate the problem. A high standard of hygiene is required, with regular cleaning of pens, equipment and feed preparation areas using a disinfectant cleaning agent. Only fresh, uncontaminated feed should be used for all animals.

Some medications can be added to the water or feed.

Veterinary advice should be obtained when dealing with sick crocodiles because it is often difficult to isolate the primary cause of the disease. Treatments include antibiotics, antifungal and antibacterial drugs. Sometimes prescriptions will be needed to obtain drugs. It should be noted that the indiscriminate use of medication such as antibiotics can lead to disastrous situations. Withholding periods for some medication must be followed under new meat-testing standards.

Harvest, handling and processing

Animals should be fasted for two days before harvesting and slaughtered humanely. A .22 bullet to the top of the neck is used to destroy the brain. Then the spinal cord and main artery are severed to bleed the animal. This area is then swabbed with a sanitiser/detergent agent to prevent spoilage.

After bleeding, the whole carcass is again scrubbed with a sanitiser. Carcasses are hung by the tail overnight at 2°C, then washed and scrubbed again with a sanitising agent. Cotton balls soaked in the agent plug the cloaca to prevent any leakage from this site.

The key requirements in the skinning process are firstly, to avoid cutting or nicking the skin and secondly to avoid contact between the carcass meat and the outer surface of the skin. The carcass is placed on the skinning table with the head tied in a plastic bag to prevent contamination of the meat.

The opening lines or first cuts depend on the style of skin required. Cuts are critical in the quality of the final product, so much care is needed. Farmers are paid on belly skin width, scale pattern and the absence of cuts or abrasions to the skin. The horn-back skin is often used as a feature which displays the prominent scales behind the head and along the back. Flaying of the skin, using high pressure water, removes the remaining meat and fat from the inside of the skin. The skins are placed in the shade to drain for 30 minutes before salting.

Skins are salted and are dried for two days, so that excess moisture is removed. Curing the skin aids in preventing spoilage by micro-organisms. After two days the skins are rolled with the flaps (legs and flanks) tucked inside and stacked in hessian-lined wax cartons or polystyrene cartons. They are stored in a coldroom until marketed.
Under CITES regulations all skins must be tagged. These tags give details of country of origin, year of skinning and an individual number.
 

Economics of production and processing

• Labour $50,000
• Energy $8,500
• Permits $3,670
• Rates, Repairs & Maintenance costs

Key contacts

Mrs Jill Millan
Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries
GPO Box 990
Darwin, NT 0801
Phone: (08) 8999 2035
Fax: (08) 8999 2146
Email: jill.millan@dpif.nt.gov.au

Dr Grahame Webb
Wildlife Management International Pty Ltd
P.O. Box 530
Karama, NT 0812
Phone: (08) 8999 2355
Fax: (08) 8947 0678 Email:gwebb@turtle.apana.org.au

The Northern Territory Industry Group
c/- Mr John Hannon
GPO Box 4600
Darwin, NT 0801
Phone: (08) 8932 5900
Fax: (08) 8932 4567

The Queensland Crocodile Group
c/- Mr John Lever
Koorana Crocodile Farm
MS 76
Rockhampton, Qld 4702
Phone: (079) 344 749
Fax: (079) 344 702

Mr Malcolm Douglas
Broome Crocodile Farm
P.O. Box 621
Broome, WA 6725
Phone: (091) 937 824
Fax: (091) 936 004
 

Key references

Beatty & Sons in association with the Conservation Commission of the Northern Territory. Proceedings from the Intensive Tropical Animal Production Seminar 1989 & 1991. Townsville Qld.

Crocodile Research Bulletins No. 1 (1995) & No. 2 (1997). Department of Primary Industries Townsville Qld.
 

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