Progress Reports

Export reform for the fish industry

The Joint Fish / Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) Ministerial Taskforce (MTF) was established in April 2009 to review and develop a more efficient export process for the seafood industry, including reducing costs and regulatory burden for exporters. The MTF has made significant progress in its reform agenda.

Key reform priorities include developing a new service delivery model and developing sophisticated IT systems to support the model. Developing new fees and charges that align with the new service delivery model is also important.

Benefits from the reform include:

• implementing an improved service delivery model
• implementing improvements to export documentation processes
• developing IT systems to support the industry and AQIS
• reducing regulatory costs and increased flexibility for industry
• improving data collection and analysis to assist objective risk-based inspection
• maintaining and improving market access through more robust export systems and performance data

Together, these changes will ensure Australia’s position at the forefront of export inspection and provide greater assurance to our international markets of the integrity of our seafood exports.

Service delivery model

The service delivery model will give the export fish industry greater flexibility by providing it with the opportunity to independently engage Approved Auditors – individuals who meet national auditor competency criteria and are approved by AQIS to carry out regulatory audits of export registered establishments engaged in the preparation, storage and loading of seafood for export. Approved Auditors will be able to be engaged by export registered establishments, should they wish, to conduct audits for compliance with legislative and importing country requirements and provide audit reports to AQIS. 

It will be a decision for registered establishments as to whether they wish to be audited by an AQIS Approved Auditor or retain AQIS authorised officers to perform the function.

AQIS and State Regulatory Authorities are also considering arrangements to minimise the duplication of regulatory food safety audits across a range of commodities, including fish, to meet both domestic and export requirements. Further information will be provided as discussions progress and can be found on the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry website.

New IT systems

Audit Management System

AMS is an interactive web portal that will support the revised service delivery model for export certification.  It will streamline data entry, analysis and reporting and replace current disparate manual systems. The AMS is being developed to span the dairy, fish, egg, grain, horticulture and meat export industries.

For more information please read the fish AMS fact sheet.

Manual of Importing Country Requirements (MICoR)

A new IT system (called MICoR) is being developed to include all known importing country requirements for fish, eggs, dairy, grain, horticulture, live animal and meat exports.  The development of MICoR will enhance exporter access to up-to-date information. This is particularly beneficial for commodities like fish and eggs where previously no such database was available. The data is now being reviewed for currency to ensure it will translate easily into the new system.

For more information please read the fish MICoR fact sheet.

Revised fees and charges

In accordance with Government policy the fish fees and charges model will see industry return to full cost recovery from 1 July 2011. The rebate currently applied against fees and charges will expire on 30 June 2011 and from 1 July 2011 the rebate will therefore be removed from invoices. Exporters will be required to cover the full costs of the services they receive from that time.

The fees and charges that will apply from 1 July 2011 are the current fees and charges.

Revised fees and charges, to be introduced in the second half of 2011, are currently being considered by the MTF to ensure they remain appropriate to the new service delivery arrangements and are applied in a manner that is equitable across all fee paying clients. More details on the fees and charges will be made available as these discussions progress. 

Background

The $127.4 million ECRP aims to deliver more efficient export certification and inspection services, and reduce AQIS fees and charges for exporters. This reform will result in a world–class export certification system based on Australian legislation which was developed in partnership with industry and government.

Continuing to meet importing country requirements, and facilitating market access to grow Australia’s $32 billion agricultural export industry, are priorities under the package.

Current fees and charges were agreed with industry in 2009 and were associated with the reform package which included a 40 per cent rebate until 30 June 2011. This is in line with the Beale Review, which recommended export certification functions should return to full cost recovery.

More information is available on ECRP webpage. This includes the detail of the projects carried out under the MTF reform workplan.