Integrity Systems Company CEO Dr Jane Weatherley.

A NEW free electronic National Vendor Declaration for Australia’s sheep and goat meat, and beef producers has been launched by Meat & Livestock Australia subsidiary, the Integrity Systems Company.

The eNVD’s supply chain benefits include the electronic transfer of Livestock Production Assurance information, animal health declarations, Meat Standards Australia declarations and National Feedlot Accreditation Scheme delivery documentation.

MLA said the eNVD system will save time and improve the accuracy of information, and would ensure the latest versions of declarations are always being used.

The eNVD system is a significant step forward for the red meat and livestock industry and underpins Australian red meat’s enviable reputation worldwide, MLA said.

Integrity Systems Company chief executive officer Dr Jane Weatherley said the introduction of the eNVD is a major development in a broad program to utilise more digital tools and technologies in the red meat industry.

“Australian producers have a strong reputation for delivering quality red meat into more than 100 international markets backed up by food safety, product integrity and traceability.

“This is enhanced by our world-leading systems including the NVD,” Dr Weatherley said.

“A fully functional eNVD platform will make life simpler for producers. It will reduce time spent completing livestock assurance and health declarations and managing historical NVDs for auditing, reporting and administrative purposes. It will also ensure the latest NVD is being used.”

The eNVD system can be used to submit and retrieve eNVDs for property to property movements, or movements to feedlots, saleyards and abattoirs.

The LPA eNVD is free and available from the LPA Service Centre website at https://lpa.nlis.com.au/. For individual supply chains that do not yet accept eNVDs, it can just be printed out. Its use is not compulsory and producers can continue to use paper NVDs which cost $40 (GST inclusive) per book or eDecs.

“In choosing to use it, producers will ensure they are providing information that meets the latest market requirements,” Dr Weatherley said.

“It’s not just on-farm where we’ll see the benefits.

“For feedlots, saleyards and processors, it reduces the likelihood of inaccuracies in information received from producers, and makes the information easier to store and retrieve,” she said.

“Most importantly, it provides greater visibility of the incoming livestock’s details before the stock arrive, enabling more efficient management.

“Overall, it will make the sharing of critical information simpler, quicker and more accurate for the entire supply chain,” Dr Weatherley said.

“This supports the promise we’re making to our customers – and means that we can stand by what we sell.”

Since early 2017, producers in specific supply chains have been able to access the Aglive licensed commercial software versions of the eNVD that adhere to the national eNVD Standards endorsed by SAFEMEAT. A list of licensed software providers is available at www.mla.com.au/envd.

Source: MLA.