New traceability measures safeguard horse industry

On the five-year anniversary of the equine influenza outbreak in NSW, the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) has joined forces with the NSW horse industry to implement new traceability measures and improve NSW’s capacity to respond to animal disease outbreaks.

From the 1st September any owner of land on which horses are kept will be required to obtain a Property Identification Code (PIC) from the Livestock Health and Pest Authority (LHPA).

NSW Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO), Ian Roth, said the DPI has responded to calls from the industry to extend the PIC scheme to cover horses following the equine influenza (EI) outbreak in 2007.

"Our ability to effectively respond to future animal disease outbreaks or other emergencies relies on knowing where horses are located as well as contact details for the owner or occupier," Mr Roth said.

"The initial response to EI was hampered by not knowing the location of horses and not being able to target areas with the highest density of horses for surveillance and vaccination.

"The DPI and the horse industry have now moved to address this limitation in our system by requiring PICs for properties with one or more horses.

"By establishing clear traceability back to specific properties we will be better placed to protect our valuable horse industry from future animal disease outbreaks.

"The introduction of a PIC system for horse properties also brings NSW into line with Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, Western Australia and the Northern Territory which already have this requirement."

Australian Horse Industry Council (AHIC) President, Roger Lavelle, said the AHIC welcomed the introduction of a mandatory PIC requirement which will enable horse owners to use the landholder’s PIC number.

"PIC numbers are an excellent example of the horse industry showing responsibility to improve biosecurity practices as required under the Emergency Animal Disease Response Agreement (EADRA)," Mr Lavelle said.

"They will prove useful in preparedness planning as they provide traceability and mapping details to complement disease containment and eradication processes."

Property and horse owners can apply for a PIC by contacting their local LHPA, or applying on line. More information is available at: www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/agriculture/livestock/nlis/pic

Please note: the introduction of PICs for horse properties does not mean that horses will be subject to any requirements of the National Livestock Identification Scheme (NLIS).

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