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Opportunities and challenges facing Australian livestock industries
A KEY theme of the recent 2020 Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Econom- ics and Sciences Out- look conference was the practical steps we’d need to take as an industry to reach the goal of lifting the value of Australian agricultural production to $100 billion over the next decade.
ness and the way consum- ers select products – driv- en by increasing demand, advances in technology, ecological considerations and climate variability – calls for a long-term, ho- listic approach to animal health and biosecurity policy in order to safe- guard investment in live- stock, and adoption of new technologies.
current and future chal- lenges, as well as the op- portunities they present.
the Australian livestock sector, reinforce the need for collaboration among industry, government, researchers and commu- nity.
Biosecurity through the supply chain plays a ma- jor role in achieving and protecting agricultural production, as was em- phasised at ABARES by Queensland cattle pro- ducer and 2019 Farm Bio- security Producer of the Year Melinee Leather.
Central to the industry’s success in this changing landscape will be ad- dressing issues of pro- tection against the risk of emerging diseases, and assurance of food safety, product integrity, prov- enance and traceability.
“When we think about these key trends and sce- narios, and their poten- tial effects on production systems and markets, we must ask what can be done to mitigate risk to our industries.
Photo: William Moreland
AHA CEO Kathleen Plowman said: “The Megatrends report high- lights how biosecurity, animal health and the health of our ecosystems are closely intertwined and critically important to Australia’s future.”
“The livestock sec- tor will need to strive for high-level scientific expertise and innova- tion to ensure new and more efficient solutions to biosecurity threats and animal health can be developed and applied as needed,” Ms Leather said.
“Our reputation for pro- ducing safe, quality food commands a premium for Australian produce at home and overseas – this is ultimately underpinned by our disease-free sta- tus,” Ms Leather said.
With these issues front of mind, Animal Health Australia commissioned Spiegare Consulting, which compiled a report titled Megatrends, Op- portunities and Chal- lenges Facing Australian Livestock Industries.
“We aim for this report to be a catalyst for ani- mal and crop industries to discuss key issues, develop new strategies, identify transformative opportunities, and trans- late these to sustainable success for the industry into the future.”
“That status relies on our animal health and biosecurity system – from Australian Border Force all the way through to individual farmers – being prepared to not only respond to threats of pests and diseases but to be proactive, innovate and make improvements to protect our industries and ecosystems.”
The Spiegare report pro- vides insights into global megatrends and explores four possible mega-shock scenarios that could im- pact future productivity and profitability of Aus- tralia’s livestock sectors over the next 10 years, through the lenses of animal health and bio- security.
Ms Plowman believes sustained co-operative and collaborative efforts will be needed to ensure our livestock industries remain competitive and retain their social licence to operate.
Rapid and transforma- tive changes in the way livestock farmers do busi-
Ms Leather agreed, add- ing the key trends out- lined in the Megatrends report as impacting on
Photo: Brett Jordan
With the analysis of these scenarios, Austral- ian livestock industries have a new outlook on
“It’s unlikely any one sector – across livestock, cropping and aquaculture – will be able to do this alone.”
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National Poultry Newspaper, April 2020 – Page 3
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