WEST Australian-based new chairman of LiveCorp, Terry Enright, has two immediate priorities on his leadership agenda.
Mr Enright has been a director for six years and replaces outgoing chairman David Galvin, who served for almost a decade in the role.
He said the “big change” the live exports industry was looking at implementing was the Livestock Global Assurance Program, to enhance animal welfare standards for Australian livestock to operate in and for accessing overseas markets.
Mr Enright said the program was about implementing a better supply chain control and traceability system, to enhance animal welfare outcomes for the live exports sector. “We’ll be working quickly to get that in place because it will really strengthen the control and traceability of livestock throughout the system and that’s the key area of focus immediately for LiveCorp.
“But longer term we’ll be focussing on ensuring we maintain market access for our key markets and work on the protocols to make sure we have access to markets,” he said.
“The Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System requires the livestock exporter to achieve control and traceability of animals. But with LGAP we’re trying to improve that control and traceability and shift it onto the node of operation in export countries, in the feedlots, transporting systems and abattoirs.”
“It means having a system in place which controls the movement of livestock through the system and more importantly, it’s an auditable system so through the LGAP company we can audit those facilities to ensure they’re complying with the system so we can control the movement of animals right throughout it.
“The industry, or livestock exporters, have just agreed to go forward with LGAP and LiveCorp as the research and development arm of the industry will put that in place.”
The goal was to have LGAP operational by 2019.
“Importantly, we’ll also be going out and talking to our customers so they understand the system and we can get engagement right across the value chain to do that,” Mr Enright said.