Distressing footage appearing to show Australian cattle being bludgeoned to death with sledgehammers in Vietnam has sparked renewed calls to ban live cattle exports. 
Animals Australia showed the footage filmed by undercover investigators to the ABC's 7.30 program. 
"The animal is obviously desperate to get away and the slaughterman walks towards him with a sledgehammer to crush that into his skull," the organisation's chief investigator, Lyn White, said as she showed 7.30 the footage.
"In terms of trauma and terror and distress for the animals, I can't think of anything worse."
In more confronting footage, a tied up bull is desperately struggling to free itself as a slaughterman approaches holding a sledgehammer.
"He's actually seeing the guy walk towards him with the sledgehammer and he's got other dead animals on the ground in front of him," Ms White said.
In each video, the cameraman asks in Vietnamese whether the cattle are Australian, and is told that they are. 
The cattle also appear to be wearing Australian tags.
In a press release, Ms White said the industry knew the problem in Vietnam was widespread.
"The only appropriate industry response is to voluntarily suspend the trade until they can publicly declare that Australian animals are not at risk of further abuse," she said.
"The live export industry will trot out their well-worn excuses but they stand guilty of year after year supplying animals to horrific cruelty."
Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce told 7.30 his department had suspended exports to the three abattoirs immediately on hearing the news on Thursday.
"We will not be banning the live cattle trade. We will be making sure we police the industry in the appropriate way," he said.
Mr Joyce said the abattoir at the centre of the most serious allegations was a non-approved facility under Australia's Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System rules.
Animals Australia first reported the incident on   June 9 and the department began investigations the next day after receiving preliminary evidence.
The department has met with Vietnamese authorities, who are also investigating the allegations.
Australian Live Exporters' Council Chairman and former Labor leader Simon Crean told 7.30 he was "shattered" watching the footage.
"You look at that, it's inexcusable," he said.
"This is the very thing that I, along with the industry, have committed to end. No animals should have to go through the fear or the pain."
Mr Crean told 7.30 the council's board had stopped the supply of cattle to the facilities under investigation.
Mr Crean admitted the council had failed to act when Animals Australia previously showed it footage without going public.
With AAP