Draft options to enhance Australia’s traceability arrangements across animal, plant and food industries are now available for stakeholder feedback.
A property identifier (or property identification code) is the basis of a traceability system. State or territory governments currently issue them to properties with livestock. The Victorian government also issues them for vineyards over 0.5 ha or properties with more than 20 chestnut trees.
The Department of Agriculture, in partnership with state and territory governments, is looking at ways to improve and expand the use of property identifiers to include the major plant production sectors, as well as the livestock sector.
This will help with managing pest and disease outbreaks, food safety, trade and market access requirements, and address increasing consumer interest in product sustainability, ethics and providence.
The enhancements will see the introduction of a consistent property identification approach across the plant and animal sectors as far as possible, so new arrangements will mean changes to existing arrangements.
You can now provide feedback on the draft property identification code principles and business rules. These have been developed by a working group comprising state and territory governments and the Commonwealth.
Public consultation will be open until 1 November.
For more information on property identifiers, visit agriculture.gov.au/biosecurity/propertyidentificationreforms
