The previous on-farm QA programs – Cattlecare and Flockcare – have been incorporated into a single non-species specific QA program now known as Livestock Production Assurance (LPA) QA.

LPA QA will be administered by the LPA Standards and Accreditation Committee (SAC); the same group that oversees the LPA food safety program (otherwise known as LPA Level 1), of which over 86,000 livestock producers are now fully accredited. More than 50 per cent of LPA registrations are now fully accredited.

Chairman of the LPA SAC Kevin Roberts said the new LPA QA program is easier to participate in and is a step up that should be considered by producers already accredited with LPA Level 1.

“There was a lot of replication between the Cattlecare and Flockcare QA programs so it made sense to consolidate the two and develop a single standard QA program for both cattle and sheep producers,” Mr Roberts said.

“The most exciting part of the new LPA QA program is that tens of thousands of livestock producers are already a fair way towards meeting the requirements of the LPA QA program.

“The 86,000 producers who are fully accredited with LPA Level 1 are already one-third of the way along the road towards LPA QA because the Food Safety Management module within LPA QA is made up of the same five elements that are the LPA Level 1 program.”

Livestock producers have to be fully accredited in LPA Level 1 in order to participate in LPA QA.

Access to LPA QA will be free for those producers taking advantage of the newly developed ‘LPA QA online’. Producers can register for LPA QA by logging on to LPA QA online and simply entering their Property Identification Code (PIC) and LPA details. LPA QA online will allow producers to easily manage the LPA QA process and will also help in preparing for an LPA audit. The only cost will be payment for an annual audit, of which prices will vary. To access LPA QA online producers should visit www.mla.com.au/lqs.

Producers can also register for LPA QA by phone and purchase a hard copy of the LPA QA manual for $44. To register by phone producers should call 1800 675 717.

The new LPA QA program is structured in such a way that it will allow specific “modules” to be added to the core LPA QA requirements.

MLA’s Manager of Livestock Quality Systems Patrick Hutchinson said that after nearly 12 months of development the first additional module is close to being finalised.

“We are finalising a Japanese Agricultural Standard (JAS) module to be ‘bolted on’ to LPA QA for those producers that wish to participate in JAS for grass-fed cattle. In addition to JAS, a module for environmental management is also being developed,” Mr Hutchinson said.

Cattle and sheep producers currently in Cattlecare and Flockcare gain automatic entry to LPA QA.

TheCattleSite News Desk