Biosecurity top of mind for Yass vet

It’s another busy day for Alex Stephens at the South-Eastern Livestock Exchange (SELX) in Yass, NSW.  

The district vet - who works for NSW Local Land Services - is busy checking cattle and sheep tags, conducting NVD audits, ensuring animals are fit-to-load, speaking with locals about biosecurity risks and looking for any signs of disease. 

It’s all part of her weekly patrol of the selling centre that can see up to 3,800 cattle and 30,000 sheep coming through the yard on sale day. 

Alex says that mitigating biosecurity risks is always top of mind. The recent outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) and lumpy skin disease (LSD) in Indonesia have put Australian producers on high alert.  

Despite the heightened risk, Alex is confident that the procedures and processes in place will not only protect Australian livestock, but the red meat industry’s position as a world leader.  

Compliance is key

As an authorised officer under the Biosecurity Act 2015, Alex oversees compliance with elements of Australia’s red meat integrity system – namely, the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) and movement documentation components of the LPA National Vendor Declarations (LPA NVDs).  

NLIS, LPA and NVDs are central to Integrity System Company’s on-farm assurance and traceability programs.

The NLIS accredited tag or device attached to an animal allows full traceability of its movements for life, while LPA provides assurance to purchasers that on-farm practices are of an acceptable standard.

NVDs and electronic NVDs (eNVD) capture the food safety and treatment of animals as they move through the value chain – between properties, to saleyards or to processors.  

As well as being a vet, Alex is also a cattle producer, so she understands that NLIS, LPA and NVDs are critical to ensuring the food safety and traceability of Australian red meat for domestic and international markets.  

“It's all about being able to ‘stand by what we sell’ as producers. Our products are safe, they're free from residues and disease and our assurance systems allow us to provide that guarantee,” Alex said.  

“Our integrity system is essentially a chain, and it's only as strong as its weakest link. If people are not doing the right thing, they become the weakest link in that chain and then the system does not work as well as it should. That's why it's so very important to do the right thing.”  

Caption: Alex Stephens, District Vet at NSW Local Land Services

Alex says Australia’s comprehensive biosecurity procedures mean authorities are well equipped to act decisively in the event of any disease outbreak.  

“Through NLIS and LPA, we can accurately and quickly trace and close in on disease if it gets into the country. Importantly, we have the information needed to make good, informed decisions about the best course of action. This reassures both the industry and red meat buyers that we can quickly nip any problem in the bud,” she said.  

Alex says while most producers get it right, there are a handful of mistakes she sees regularly when it comes to complying with integrity system programs and meeting biosecurity standards.   

“The most common error I see is animals missing tags, particularly cattle. The simple solution is having spare tags on hand. It's about observing the animals, checking if they have a tag and, if not, replacing the tag before they get onto the truck,” she said.  

Not only does NLIS use information from animal tags to provide a history of an animal's movements, but it also records its contact with other livestock.

Animal welfare is priority number one

Animal welfare is also a key priority for Alex and at the heart of compliance with integrity system programs. 

She’s observed that it’s often the honest mistakes made by producers, such as loading the wrong animal for sale or processing, which can catch them out.  

“This mistake is often a case of not observing the stock closely enough and assessing them correctly before they're loaded,” Alex said.  

“It’s important producers consider things like is the animal weight bearing and walking on all four legs, can it see properly out of both eyes, is it in late stages of pregnancy, does it have a wound or injury that would become worse through transport or need veterinary attention?” 

“When the integrity system is working well, it benefits everyone along the red meat supply chain. That’s every person involved in each stage of the process, from paddock to plate.”  

Managing biosecurity risks

Awareness and concern about FMD and LSD are heightened in the current risk situation.  ISC are encouraging livestock producers to be as proactive as they can. This involves knowing the signs of FMD and LSD, reporting anything unusual and checking and updating their biosecurity management plans.

Additional resources, including how-to guides and information are also available on the FMD and LSD web page.