Australian agriculture is committed to continuous improvement in animal welfare & a robust, science-based biosecurity system that protects Australia from the damaging impact of pests and diseases.
Australian farmers are renowned for their innovation and adoption of world-class operating standards. Farmers take seriously our responsibility to consumers and the community. Healthy animals and excellence in animal care is not only the right thing to do, but also integral to productive farming practices.
To continuously improve animal husbandry and to develop best practice for production animals, the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) encourages collaboration, between farmers, government and the community. The NFF is committed to its responsibility to be leaders in animal welfare for commercial livestock and production animals.
Protecting Australian livestock and crops from pests and diseases, is essential to productivity and underpins the competitiveness of Australian produce overseas. A strong, robust and science-based approach to biosecurity is essential to the farm sector’s continued growth.
Australian farmers value the trust that the community places in them, and know that community acceptance of the way they care for animals is essential to the agriculture industry’s success.
Australia’s biosecurity system is fundamental to the success of our agriculture industries, to the health of our natural environment, and our society and economy at large.
Timely access to safe and effective AgVet chemicals is critical to Australian agriculture’s productivity, sustainability, competitiveness, and supports food and fibre security.
The NFF reaffirms its steadfast opposition to the Australian Government’s policy to phase out the live sheep trade.
Australian farmers value the trust that the community places in them, and know that community acceptance of the way they care for animals is essential to the agriculture industry’s success.
The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) is committed to ongoing and transparent dialogue with the community about the management of animal welfare. Engagement with the community based on trust and transparency is a core tenet of the NFF’s plan for a $100 billion agriculture sector by 2030.
Animal welfare is defined by the World Organisation for Animal Health as ‘the physical and mental state of an animal in relation to the conditions in which it lives and dies’.
Australian farmers strive to be recognised as global leaders in livestock management by using science-based best practice methods of husbandry based on agreed national minimum welfare standards.
Animal welfare is also a legal requirement with state and territory governments responsible for regulating and enforcing minimum welfare standards. All animals deserve to be treated with care and respect, and Australian farmers, who care for their animals, are best placed to drive continuous improvement in welfare outcomes within our industry.
Australia’s biosecurity system is fundamental to the success of our agriculture industries, to the health of our natural environment, and our society and economy at large. An adequately funded, well-resourced and effective system will be an essential part of industry achieving our goal of $100 billion in farm gate output by 2030.
The primary industry sector is a critical part of the nation’s biosecurity continuum, contributing in-kind and financially to the national system through their own activities, levies and other fees that support emergency response arrangements, research, development, extension and adoption (RDE&A).
Australia’s geographic isolation partnered with appropriate biosecurity practices along the pre-border, border and post-border, has ensured that Australia remains free of many damaging invasive species found elsewhere in the world. This brings many benefits. Not only are our environment, community and primary industries protected from the direct damaging impacts of these invasive species, but the status also provides a competitive advantage when marketing our produce domestically and overseas.
Australia’s favourable pest and disease status contribute to our products being both highly competitive and sought-after on the world market. Maintaining this status is central to industry growth ambitions.
Agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines (AgVet chemicals) are essential to producing food and fibre in Australia. Timely access to safe and effective AgVet chemicals is critical to Australian agriculture’s productivity, sustainability, competitiveness, and supports food and fibre security.
The NFF seeks an efficient, science- and risk-based regulatory environment that delivers world-leading access to technology.
Targeted reforms are needed to deliver the NFF’s vision for Australia’s regulatory environment: one that appropriately manages risk and supports agile, efficient access to AgVet chemicals to bolster productivity, manage threats to production systems, and strengthen Australia’s food and fibre security.
The NFF represents one of the largest groups of legitimate chemical users in Australia. The responsible use, monitoring and storage of farm chemicals is of paramount importance to Australia’s farmers, and must be consistently applied across state borders in line with community expectations about safety and sound environmental management.
We work with stakeholders including the Australian Government, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA), Animal Medicines Australia and CropLife Australia to ensure Australian farmers have the technology and tools they need to protect and manage pests and diseases and increase productivity.
The NFF reaffirms its steadfast opposition to the Australian Government’s policy to phase out the live sheep trade. The policy does not accurately reflect community sentiment or Australia’s world-leading regulatory framework for animal welfare. Crucially, the policy will have significant and far-reaching adverse impacts not only on the sheep and wool sectors in Western Australia but throughout Australia, with those impacts extending to secondary commodities including grains and fodder.
Undoubtedly, the phase-out of Australian live sheep exports by sea will cause considerable market disruption around the nation as WA restructures its flock, with further impacts on social and health outcomes for producers.
The phase-out of Australian live sheep exports also places Australia’s status as a valued and trusted trading partner at risk. This risk extends not just to the broader sheepmeat and wool markets, but to the entire agricultural sector and other trade-exposed industries of the Australian economy.
The NFF strongly supports the live export trade of livestock from Australia. Producers take great confidence in Australia’s world-leading regulatory frameworks, including the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS) and the Australian Standards for the Export of Livestock. The industry strongly supports ESCAS through the development and extension of Standard Operating Procedures that align with the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) animal welfare requirements. This system, the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS), is an approved and independently audited system that meets international animal welfare standards, safeguarding the welfare of exported Australian animals. This support includes training, education and technical advice developed by industry and delivered by locally based animal welfare officers.
The NFF strongly supports the National Biosecurity Strategy (NBS) as a framework to align priorities and actions to strengthen Australia’s biosecurity system. The proposed reform agenda presents a range of
The NFF does not support the APVMA proposal to declare second generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs) as Restricted Chemical Products (RCPs) unless continuing access to SGARs for primary producers is guaranteed.
Gene technology has had significant positive impacts in Australian agriculture, including in cotton and grains, and has strong potential to address significant challenges in the future. The NFF supports reforms
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