Page 6 - National Poultry Newspaper

ACMF website pages underwent a significant update with the development of new visuals and fact sheets on the nutritional value of chicken Annabel Selby-Jones is the new communications meat. manager for ACMF.
The year that was 2020 in the chicken meat industry
THE Australian Chicken Meat Federation is the peak coordinating body for participants in the chicken meat industry in Australia.
flocks were directly af- fected by the disease, the chicken industry nation- ally and in the state of Victoria was nevertheless severely impacted, par- ticularly as a consequence of loss of export markets.
Activities focussed heav- ily on dispelling unfounded community concern re- garding the potential role of chickens and chicken meat in spreading the virus and also in assisting indus- try with its preparedness activities, including devel- oping and promulgating guidelines to assist industry develop plans for mitigat- ing risks associated with COVID-19.
the organisation by both the COVID-19 and avian influenza outbreaks, the ACMF was able to pro- gress a number of initia- tives over the past year, in- cluding the launch of new online school education resources aligned with the national curriculum.
standards and guidelines are expected to be re- leased for comment in March 2021 and the fi- nal version signed off by agriculture ministers in May.
ACMF’s new commu- nications manager is An- nabel Selby-Jones.
tralians why chicken is their favourite healthy and affordable protein. Conclusion
It represents all elements of the industry including meat chicken farmers and processors nationally and is recognised as the industry representative body by the Australian Government. The year that was
The industry dem- onstrated its resilience throughout this difficult period, managing to meet consumer demand and avoiding food shortages and adverse animal wel- fare outcomes under the most trying of circum- stances.
Over the same period, the ACMF website health and nutrition pages under- went a significant update, with the development of new visuals and fact sheets on the nutritional value of chicken meat.
The ACMF will have significant work to do over the coming year, ini- tially in communicating the industry’s position on the draft standards and subsequently the implica- tions of agreed changes in animal welfare legislation to industry.
Annabel is a seasoned communications profes- sional with 20 years’ ex- perience across the con- sumer health and nutri- tion industries, including working on a range of horticulture clients.
Over the past year the chicken industry has demonstrated incredible adaptability and resil- ience, overcoming signifi- cant obstacles and chal- lenges to continue to meet the demands of Australian consumers and produce more chicken meat than ever before.
2020 was a challenging year for the chicken in- dustry, as indeed it was for Australia and the global community.
The chicken industry was the first agricultural industry to release guide- lines for managing the COVID-19 risk in its most exposed facilities.
The long-awaited revi- sion of the industry’s bi- osecurity manual for the industry was completed and released mid-year.
The ACMF and industry more broadly will need to be increasingly active in demonstrating the indus- try’s commitment on key welfare issues to consum- ers of chicken meat. Boosting communica- tion efforts
Many positive opportu- nities have been identified for the chicken industry to strengthen its efforts.
That is the nature of this industry, which deserves to be proud of its produce and significant achieve- ments.
It was particularly so for chicken processors who had to manage the demands and impacts of COVID-19 on chicken meat markets and work- places.
In the six-month period from April 1 to Septem- ber 30, 2020 the industry lifted its production of chicken meat by 3 per- cent when compared to the same period the previ- ous year.
These guidelines were subsequently adopted and variously adapted by a range of other animal industries and were used as the risk management model by a number of government agencies, in- cluding NSW Food Au- thority and Food SA.
The industry doubled down on its antimicrobi- al stewardship efforts in 2020.
More proactive con- sumer-focussed activities have also been planned to solidify the demand for chicken and remind Aus-
For more information, visit www.chicken.org. au
Issues management is an area Annabel particularly enjoys.
The industry was further challenged by outbreaks of avian influenza in the Victorian poultry indus- try.
The pandemic domi- nated the attention and activities of the ACMF for much of the past year, particularly in the early stages of the pandemic.
Despite the demands and challenges placed on
An AgriFutures Aus- tralia funded independ- ent verification of AMS processes at the six major chicken companies re- vealed that all either had in place mature and ef- fective programs or com- prehensive animal health plans that incorporated AMS principles.
The ACMF will be ramping up its commu- nications in 2021 with the engagement of a new communications manager.
While no meat chicken
Communication is a ma- jor function of ACMF and while the organisation has always been effective in its interactions, the team determined that a more proactive and responsive approach was needed go- ing forward, hence bring- ing the communications role in-house.
Technical Systems Australia or TSA is a leading Australian company dedicated to the supply, installation and service of agricultural equipment to Australian, New Zealand and Paci c markets for poultry (boilers and breeders), layer (free range and barn layer), quail (broiler and breeders), duck (broiler, breeder and layers), turkey (breeder and production), pig, agricultural, farming, aquaculture, horticulture and brewing industries plus many more.
• We pride ourselves on customer service and after sales support
• 86 years combined industry experience
• Full consulting, supply, shipping, installation, manufacturing, service and repairs
• Repair and maintenance on all equipment and spare parts
• Onsite service and breakdown.
Tel: 07 5429 2028 Fax: 07 5429 2038
Mobile: 0424 413 484
TSA proudly represents Agrotop sheds, the world leader in livestock turnkey packages and design in the region. We offer a free quote on all turnkey projects. We design each shed to the customer’s needs. Finance options available.
scotty@tsa.tech reception@tsa.tech
www.tsa.tech
Page 6 – National Poultry Newspaper, January 2021
The long awaiting na- tional poultry welfare
www.poultrynews.com.au
The project further confirmed that only an- timicrobials of low im- portance are used, alter- natives to antimicrobials are actively investigated and implemented by all companies, and that many of the management strat- egies adopted over time have eliminated the need for several antimicrobial treatments completely.
One of ACMF’s initiatives, the 2020 launch of new online school education resources aligned with the national curriculum.
PIX AMC postponed to 2022
ON behalf of the or- ganising committees for the Poultry In- formation Exchange and the Australasian Milling Conference, and our conference organiser International Conferences & Events, we would like to an- nounce a major deci- sion we have had to make.
ees and organisers are paramount to us.
tive of the support for PIX AMC and looks forward to this continu- ing as it navigates these extraordinary circum- stances.
Due to ongoing move- ment restrictions, we are unable to hold the inter- national conference PIX AMC has grown to be.
In discussing our op- tions with many stake- holders, exhibitors and attendees, the organis- ing committee feels it has made the correct decision to deliver a conference that will meet the needs and expectations of all in- volved.
More information will be released in due course as the planning for PIX AMC 2022 gets underway.
The international movement constraints combined with the con- tinued company-based restrictions imposed on staff aided the organis- ing committee in mak- ing the tough decision to further postpone PIX AMC until May 2022.
The conference team is extremely apprecia-
For more information, visit pixamc.com.au
As such, this delay will allow for control mechanisms such as vaccines to be rolled out domestically and inter- nationally.
We are pleased to say the event will be re- tained at the Gold Coast Convention & Exhibi- tion Centre and all pay- ments made to-date will be carried forward to the 2022 event.
The safety of our part- ners, exhibitors, attend-
In the coming year we expect to progress AMS efforts even further, with several projects initiated to assist industry’s efforts in this respect, including assessment of the antimi- crobial resistance testing capacities available to the industry and conduct of an AMR survey to identi- fy any changes in profiles since the previous survey conducted in 2016.
The ACMF will con- tinue to participate in and possibly lead cross-secto- ral AMS efforts in 2021. Additional focus areas for 2021
In addition to concen- trating on industry’s AMS activities, the ACMF fore- sees a busy year and one it hopes will not be domi- nated by COVID-19.