Reminder to complete NLIS transfers
- LPA-accredited producers must ensure all livestock transfers on and off their PIC are recorded on the NLIS database.
- Unless purchased through a saleyard, the buyer or receiver of livestock must complete the transfer on the NLIS database. However, the vendor/sender should still check this movement has been recorded.
- When agents or third party providers complete NLIS transfers on a producer’s behalf, it is still the responsibility of the receiver to confirm this has been completed.
- Failure to complete NLIS transfers will be recorded as a non-conformance by LPA auditors and may lead to suspension from the LPA program. Penalties may be imposed for failing to complete NLIS transfers as required by legislation in your state or territory.
Livestock Production Assurance (LPA) accredited producers exercise best practice when producing red meat products and must be able to provide evidence to back this up.
As part of maintaining the traceability of livestock and being LPA-accredited, producers must ensure all livestock transfers between property identification codes (PICs) are completed on the National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) database.
If a producer is selected to participate in an LPA audit, the auditor will review whether all transfers for livestock moved onto their PIC have been recorded on the NLIS database.
Failure to complete NLIS transfers will be recorded as a non-conformance by the auditor and may lead to the suspension of a producer’s LPA accreditation, removing access to LPA National Vendor Declarations (NVDs). State legislation also requires that the buyer or receiver of the livestock completes the transfer on the NLIS database. Penalties may be imposed by your state or territory government for failing to complete these transfers as required.
The buyer or receiver of livestock is legally responsible for completing the transfer on the NLIS database. The exception to this is that if livestock are bought, sold or moved through a saleyard, the transfer in the NLIS database must be completed by the saleyard.
For private sales – those that do not take place via a saleyard – the buyer/receiver of the livestock should complete the transfer on the NLIS database. However, if the stock were purchased privately through an agent, the agent may complete this transfer on the producer’s behalf. Producers should clarify with the agent who will complete the transfer when the purchase is made.
While the vendor/sender of the livestock is not obligated to complete the transfer on the NLIS database, they may do so if the buyer and/or livestock agent has not already completed the transfer.
If a third party or livestock agent does complete a transfer, the producer should ask for the Upload ID as a receipt to show the transfer has been completed.
The Upload ID is displayed in the email sent to the NLIS user who completes the livestock transfer on the database. This email can be forwarded to the receiver or buyer of the livestock to provide them with the Upload ID.
The Upload ID can also be retrieved by running a transaction history report.
ISC recommends producers record the Upload ID on the LPA NVD when the livestock arrive, to make it easy to check later and to show an LPA auditor.
Producers should check that their current holdings are up to date in the NLIS database, and that livestock which have been sold have been transferred off. It is recommended that producers conduct a PIC reconciliation annually to ensure all livestock transfers have been completed correctly.
Regardless of who completes the transfer, it is imperative that producers always check the transfer has been made on the NLIS database to ensure that traceability is maintained.
Step-by-step guides are available on the ISC website to assist producers and agents to:
- complete a livestock movement on the NLIS database
- run a transaction history report to check livestock movements have been recorded in the NLIS database
- conduct a PIC reconciliation to ensure all livestock transfers have been completed correctly.