Animal welfare is important to Australians and the international community. We ensure that it remains a priority in the way we regulate livestock exports.
What we do
Under the Export Control Act 2020 we regulate animal welfare in livestock exports. We set, maintain and review the Australian Standards for the Export of Livestock (ASEL) and Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS).
To support our policies and regulations, we analyse:
- animal welfare data before, during and after the export process
- existing domestic and international standards
- the latest science and industry research.
We put in place ways to measure livestock welfare and we track mortality rates. This informs the practices we use to support and promote livestock welfare. These practices protect livestock during export and in the importing country.
How we support and promote livestock welfare
We:
- engage with stakeholders and consider their feedback
- perform and publish reviews
- commission independent reviews and technical reports
- review voyage outcomes
- advise on welfare issues and proposals for export livestock
- support research on remote collection of livestock welfare information
- work on a systems verification and validation program
- conduct investigations and act when needed.
Our stakeholders
We engage with stakeholders to promote transparency and information-sharing. These include:
- industry stakeholders
- state and territory regulators
- other regulators
- animal welfare organisations
- researchers
- the community.
See more
Contact us
- GPO Box 858, Canberra ACT 2601 Australia
- animal.welfare@agriculture.gov.au