2024/25 Dairy Statistics: NZ dairy farmers boost production with fewer cows
According to the New Zealand Dairy Statistics 2024/25 report, New Zealand dairy farmers are achieving more with fewer cows.
DairyNZ, OSPRI and Ministry for Primary Industries stress that good biosecurity practices, including NAIT compliance, are critical over this period.
When NAIT compliance is compromised, the country's traceability system is threatened, and we run the risk of having a system that will not perform in the event of another disease outbreak.
OSPRI's message is clear: all movements of cattle and deer between NAIT locations must be recorded in NAIT within 48 hours of them leaving one property and arriving at a new property.
The Person in Charge of Animals (PICA) sending the animals is responsible for recording a sending movement in NAIT. The PICA receiving the animals is responsible for recording a receiving movement.
All animal movements between NAIT locations must be recorded, even if there has been no change of ownership - for example, moving them for grazing or mating and even if the animals are exempt from tagging.
OSPRI says it's important to record movements because up-to-date information in NAIT means the time it takes to control disease outbreaks, the number of affected farms and the risk to livelihood can all be reduced.
Farmers are advised that to record a movement, they need their NAIT location number, the NAIT location number of the other property, the date the animals left, or arrived at your property and the individual NAIT RFID or visual tag numbers of the animals that have moved. Farmers are also required to complete an Animal Status Declaration (ASD) while moving animals to another property, a saleyard or meat processor, although there are exceptions.
ASDs transfer important information about animals being sold or moved to the next PICA or meat processor. This includes information about animal health and treatments, farming practices, and TB incidence and testing.
As well as passing on information to a new PICA, ASD information is important when deciding if animal products are suitable for overseas markets. They support the issuing of export certificates by the Government - vital to New Zealand's trade-dependent economy. Meat processors use the information to guide examinations of the animals before and after slaughter.
OSPRI says if you are the PICA for any animals that must have an ASD before they move off farm, it is your responsibility to complete it.
"If you buy animals from a saleyard, they pass on the ASD, which they will adjust if the number of animals on the vendor's ASD has changed."
