Information for processors

Why animal welfare matters:

Legally, you are responsible to deliver a safe working environment for employees, visitors to your processing facility and the livestock under your care. This obligation falls under legislation relating to Workplace Health and Safety and the Animal Welfare Chain of Responsibility.

Financially, proper preparation for transport flows through to positively influence animal welfare during the journey and ultimately better end product quality. 

Ethically, no one wants to cause undue pain and suffering to livestock. Customers and the community want surety from the livestock and meat processing sector that there are effective systems in place to assure animal welfare. 

Industry sustainability

• Good preparation for transport:

• reduces the risk of dark cutters
• minimises bruising
• optimises the chances of carcases falling within preferred meat quality specifications and preferences
• supports food safety.

• It is essential that every part of the supply chain gets the job right as livestock approach the final processing stage.

Getting it right on farm

Abattoirs have mandatory reporting requirements to the federal government on welfare issues. This reporting reflects the welfare performance of the industry. Livestock that are reported as being welfare-compromised on arrival at the abattoir are often unfit to load at the feedlot/farm. These animals pose a reputational risk to processors and everyone in the supply chain that was involved in their preparation and transport.

• Ante mortem inspection at the abattoir has the potential to reflect good or poor performance and is a transparent welfare indicator that all parts of the supply chain need to be aware of.

What do I need to know?

• Processors procuring livestock directly from farms or feedlots need to know and understand:

• optimal preparation of livestock of different classes for transport
• how their nutritional background may impact their ability to travel
• what their welfare and physiological requirements are.

• Strong relationships with producers and feedlots to ensure adoption of best practice preparation for transport.
• Transport-related factors that impact food safety and quality e.g. livestock that have conditions which mean they shouldn’t be loaded as they pose contamination risks at the abattoir such as abscesses etc. These livestock should not be loaded and therefore should not end up in a processing facility.
• Scheduling and fatigue management for drivers and how that may impact animal welfare. Problematic livestock that go down during the journey and require constant management have the potential to push drivers outside legal working hours under National Heavy Vehicle Regulator requirements. Everyone in the supply chain can be held accountable for breaches of regulations and poor outcomes under chain of responsibility law.
• Emergency Numbers – in the event that there is an issue during transit, it is important to have numbers to call that can assist the driver with removal and disposal of the downer or deceased animal/s.
• LivestockASSIST – a 24-hour national hotline to coordinate emergency responses to incidents involving heavy vehicles carrying livestock. The national number is 1800 4 ALRTA (or 1800 425 782). Note: The hotline is free for all livestock transporters or anyone else at the scene of an incident.
• Pre-loading inspections and fit to load assessments for the intended journey. As the customer, processors need to clearly communicate expectations to producers (owner operators) that only livestock which are fit for the journey are loaded.
• Consequences - processors should communicate what actions will be taken (consequences) when requirements are not met and livestock are assessed on arrival as unfit for human consumption. That is, they should never have been loaded and transported from their property of origin.
• Access at arrival – ensure clear communication between processor and transporter so trucks have unimpeded access to unload. Yard and ramp lighting should work.