Andre Klynsmith

Cargo Handling

Forty-Five Years Old and Still Loading: Marine Insurers Put Livestock Carriers on Watch

The International Union of Marine Insurance has agreed to update the livestock transport entry on its ESG watch list after a coalition of 38 organisations submitted evidence that the global livestock carrier fleet is old, heavily converted and disproportionately detained by port state control.

Cargo Handling

15 September 2026 • 3 min read

IUMI will reference the 2026 Global Livestock Fleet Report in its ESG watch list but declined to write sector-specific underwriting standards, citing competition law and its role as an association rather than a regulator. For exporters in Southern Africa, the substance is in the detention and ownership data, not the insurance politics.

What the fleet data shows

The 2026 Global Livestock Fleet Report analysed 159 vessels engaged in transporting livestock by sea. Of those, 134 — roughly 84% — were not originally built to carry live animals but converted from other cargo trades, often decades ago. Converted livestock carriers average 45 years of age, and 51 vessels in the fleet are at least 50 years old.

The report also found that 47.3% of the fleet operates under flags appearing on the Paris Memorandum of Understanding blacklist, and that 54.7% is held through single-vessel corporate structures, many registered in offshore jurisdictions. The coalition argued those structures make loss recovery difficult when a vessel is lost or abandoned.

What IUMI agreed to — and what it refused

The Global Stop Live Exports Network, which includes Stop Live Export South Africa, wrote to IUMI in July asking for an independent actuarial assessment of the fleet, due diligence standards for underwriting livestock carriers, and a review of whether premiums adequately reflect the risk. Lisa Baker, President of Stop Live Exports Australia, framed the submission as a maritime and underwriting question rather than an ethical one.

IUMI confirmed that livestock transport already sits on its ESG watch list, agreed to update the entry to cite the 2026 report, and agreed to meet the coalition. It declined to develop sector-specific underwriting standards, pointing to competition law considerations and the fact that it is an industry body, not a regulator. That refusal matters: it leaves risk pricing to individual underwriters, who will now be reading the same detention statistics.

The practical read for Southern African livestock exporters

Live animal exports move out of Southern African ports on this same global fleet. Loading operations for live cargo are among the most demanding on any quay — ramps, pens, ventilation, feed and water loading, veterinary clearance and tight tidal windows all compress into a single call. A detained or delayed vessel does not simply push a sailing date; it strands livestock in holding facilities at cost, with welfare and veterinary consequences that escalate hourly.

An elevated ESG watch list entry also tends to travel. Banks financing the trade, charterers, port authorities and cargo insurers all read the same watch lists, and scrutiny that starts with hull underwriters usually arrives at cargo cover and terminal access agreements within a season or two. Operators handling this cargo should expect more questions about vessel age, flag and beneficial ownership, not fewer.

About the Author
	Andre Klynsmith Entrepreneur & Technology Enthusiast Andre's expertise spans technology, blockchain, transport, and logistics — with a passion for innovation and driving positive change across industries. info@laaimylorrie.com | laaimylorrie.com