Background
NSW is the largest sheep and goat producing state in Australia, with sheep numbers reaching 27.1 million head in 2023. Accurate and timely traceability is essential to reduce the time to respond and manage disease or residue incidents, and to provide confidence to consumers. Strong traceability also allows Australia to maintain its hard-won reputation as a producer of ‘clean, green and disease free’ food and fibre.
A 2020 traceability exercise by SAFEMEAT found that only 70% of slaughtered sheep identified with visual tags with the mob-based system could be traced back to the vendor/s or property/s of residence for the previous 30 days, whereas 99.64% of slaughtered sheep with electronic identification (eID) devices could be traced back to the vendor/s or property/s of residence over the same period.
The Victorian eID experience has also shown that traceback now takes a matter of minutes, compared to days for a visual tag mob-based system.
In September 2022, all agricultural ministers in Australia agreed to work towards mandatory implementation of individual sheep and goat eID nationwide by 1 January 2025. This system will be based on the current National Livestock Identification System (NLIS). For sheep and goats, this will mean a change from a visual tag and mob-based traceability system to one where individual animals can be tracked and traced using eID devices, as is currently in place for cattle.
While nationally the agreed timeline for full implementation of eID is 2025, NSW is taking a more considered approach. Activities towards full implementation began in June 2024 and will be phased in until 1 January 2027, when mandatory eID will be required for all sheep and goats leaving a property in NSW.
NSW key dates
Current requirements
- All sheep and goats born from 1 January 2025 must have an eID device applied prior to leaving the property of birth
- Mandatory eID scanning and upload by processors, saleyards and depots
- Mandatory individual eID property to property (P2P) NLIS transfers.
From 1 January 2027
- All sheep and goats must have an eID device applied prior to leaving any property, regardless of age.
Biosecurity (National Livestock Identification System) Regulation 2017
The Biosecurity (National Livestock Identification System) Amendment (Electronic Devices) Regulation 2024 commenced on 30 June 2024.
It makes amendments to the Biosecurity (National Livestock Identification System) Regulation 2017 (NLIS Regulation) to support the implementation of individual electronic identification (eID) for sheep and goats in NSW.
In general, these amendments include:
- requiring new types of permanent identifiers (eID devices) to be attached to sheep and goats,
- updating arrangements for harvested rangeland goats, which are goats captured from the wild and are included in the NLIS after capture.
- requiring record keeping for the movement sheep and goats identified with eID devices.
- requiring certain information be provided to Integrity Systems Company (the NLIS administrator) for sheep and goats identified with eID devices.
The amendments give effect to the agreement by Agriculture Ministers in 2022 to work towards mandatory implementation of a national individual eID system for the NLIS (Sheep and Goats). A Decision Regulation Impact Statement was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) in relation to the implementation of improvements to the National Livestock Identification System for sheep and goats. This has informed the Ministers’ decision to implement eID for sheep and goats nationally.
Implementation Plan
NSW has an implementation plan that provides more detail on why we are moving to eID.
Upcoming Events
To find out where our team will be delivering information about sheep and goat eID, visit the LLS Upcoming Events page or sign up for our newsletter.
Contact us
The sheep and goat traceability team has expert staff located around NSW that are available to answer your questions and attend events in your area. Contact us at sheepgoateid@dpird.nsw.gov.au.