Fewer bobby calves as dairy farmers shift to beef breeding
Fewer bobby calves are heading to the works this season, as more dairy farmers recognise the value of rearing calves for beef.
CRV was presented with its accreditation certification in Hamilton recently.
In order to gain NAIT accreditation, applicants go through rigorous screening, including the completion of a number of education modules and audit assessments.
OSPRI national manager quality, compliance and assurance Melissa Bailey says the intention of the new voluntary accreditation system is to give farmers more confidence that organisations handling and managing their NAIT data, such as saleyards and meat processors, meet the highest industry-agreed standards.
Under the old system, more than 150 providers were accredited. Farmers were getting notices for not complying and there were some instances where the movements were recorded incorrectly.
"Using a provider who has been accredited under the new system gives farmers peace of mind that the registration and movement of their animals are being recorded in an accurate and timely manner," says Bailey.
"Being able to trust a third-party provider with this responsibility not only protects farmers' businesses from disease and biosecurity threats, but it also helps them avoid penalties for non-compliance."
Bailey says farmers using an accredited NAIT provider mean that the organisation is backed by OSPRI.
"If anything goes wrong, OSPRI can provide help and support to remedy the situation. Even after these providers become accredited, our team works closely with them to monitor their performance regularly and make sure they do the job right every time."
As the first entity to achieve NAIT accreditation under the new standards, Bailey says CRV is leading the way and she hopes it will encourage others to join the programme.
"There are already a number of other providers in the pipeline whose teams are about to finish their training modules and become accredited."
CRV myHERD product manager Andrew Fraser says the decision to become NAIT accredited means CRV can continue to help dairy farmers meet their obligations and protect their farm businesses.
"Having an effective animal traceability system is like having car or house insurance, you don't know when you'll need it, but when you do, you're very happy you've got it," says Fraser.
"Farmers can have confidence the CRV team can help them resolve their NAIT queries in myHERD and ensure they remain compliant.
"For example, if they purchase an animal and discover it's never been registered with NAIT, or a calf's EID tag doesn't exist in the system, we can then work with the farmer to get to the bottom of the problem and fix it.
"We are proud to be the first provider to become accredited under the new system. While the training modules are comprehensive and the process is thorough, it highlighted that we already have robust quality processes and procedures in place."
