Spotlight on traceability at LambEx 2018
The recent gathering of national and state sheep industry bodies at LambEx 2018 in the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre provided an opportunity to demonstrate the traceability systems that support Western Australia’s high sheep biosecurity status.
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) Stock Identification and Traceability Operations manager Beth Green worked with LambEx organisers to ensure sheep exhibited at LambEx met traceability requirements.
“Meeting national and Western Australian livestock traceability requirements is a critical part of maintaining the State’s high biosecurity status and access to markets,” Ms Green said.
“With effective traceability systems, WA is able to assure our domestic and export markets that our livestock are free of harmful diseases and residues.
“Sometimes producers may assume that completing the traceability requirements for events such as LambEx is unnecessary because the animals will be returning to the home property – but this is not the case.
“All movements from one property identification code (PIC) to another must be recorded on the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) database to maintain traceability.
“In the case of LambEx, the department assisted organisers by creating a PIC for the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre, as every place that is used to keep animals, even temporarily, must have a PIC.
“The 12 producers who exhibited 86 head at LambEx all completed separate waybills for travel to and from the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre PIC and I assisted with transferring their stock between their home PIC and the convention centre PIC on the NLIS database,” Ms Green said.
“It was great to meet with producers and grower group members throughout LambEx to answer their queries about using the NLIS database. Once people have seen a demonstration of how the system works, most of them comment that it is far less complicated than they had thought it would be.
“I am always happy to attend grower group and other industry meetings to demonstrate NLIS and using the database.
“If producers or industry have any queries about traceability, they can contact the department on 1300 WA NLIS (1300 926 547).”