Australian milk residue analysis survey

The Australian Milk Residue Analysis (AMRA) Survey provides a national, independent chemical residue monitoring program in Australian bovine milk. The AMRA Survey has a key role in promoting the dairy industry’s reputation and facilitating ongoing market access by monitoring on-farm chemical use.

Throughout each year around 1000 samples of raw milk are collected from farms across all dairying regions of Australia. These samples are used to conduct around 13,000 analyses for nearly 70 different compounds covering antimicrobials, animal parasite control chemicals, feed contaminants and environmental contaminants.

The results tell an overwhelmingly positive story with close to 100% compliance over the history of the survey.

The survey is coordinated by Dairy Food Safety Victoria (DFSV) on behalf of the department and other state regulatory authorities. The department remains responsible for the overall management of the survey.

Until 2017 the program was supported and funded by Dairy Australia on behalf of the Australian dairy industry. In 2017 these arrangements changed to better align funding with the survey’s principal objectives around market access and export certification, with future funding through the department’s export cost recovery arrangement.