Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS)

ESCAS Reference Documentation

All ESCAS related reference documentation can be viewed on the ESCAS Reference Documents web page.

General information about ESCAS arrangements

The handling of animals involved in Australia's livestock exports trade is of great concern to the community and the Australian Government.

Following evidence of animal cruelty, on 8 June 2011 the Australian Government temporarily suspended the export of all livestock for the purpose of slaughter to Indonesia until new animal welfare safeguards were established for the trade.

Prior to the suspension, exporters of livestock to Indonesia were only required to track exported animals from the property of origin in Australia to the port of export and report on the outcome of the voyage to Indonesia.

An Industry Government Working Group (IGWG) was established to develop a regulatory framework to address the areas of concern with the export of livestock to Indonesia. Under the regulatory framework implemented for livestock exports to Indonesia for the purpose of slaughter, the exporter must supply evidence of an acceptable Exporter Supply Chain Assurance system (ESCAS) before an exporter can be issued with an approval to export by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF). Detail of the ESCAS can be found below at Overview of the ESCAS Process.

On 21 October 2011 the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry announced that the Australian Government will extend the ESCAS framework developed for Indonesia to all livestock exports for the purpose of slaughter by the end of 2012. This decision reflects the recommendations of the Farmer Review. Please see the table below for the timeline for implementation.

The IGWGs have developed separate regulatory framework documents for cattle and buffalo; and sheep and goats that take into account the differences that exist between the species.

In addition, the cattle and buffalo IGWG subsequently made a number of amendments to the regulatory framework that was initially developed for Indonesia. Exporters are directed to the full version of the IGWG reports at:

Table 1 - Timeline for Implementation of the Regulatory Framework
Tranche Countries Implementation Date % of Trade
Existing Indonesia, Egypt Post-arrival regulatory arrangements already in place. 75 per cent
Tranche 1 Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Turkey 1 March 2012
Tranche 2 Israel, Japan, Jordan, Malaysia, Oman, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, United Arab Emirates 1 September 2012 99 per cent
Tranche 3 Brunei, Mauritius, Russia, Vietnam, other markets By 31 December 2012 100 per cent

Note: The new regulatory framework will be applied to new markets on their commencement.

The regulatory framework will be implemented through subordinate legislation (Orders), the purpose of which is threefold:

When an ESCAS is required

The table below lists declared countries, declared livestock and declaration dates. An ESCAS is not required for the export of declared live-stock to a declared country if:

For Livestock by Sea

  1. the export date listed on the NOI is before the declaration date listed in table 2, and
  2. permission to leave for loading is granted before the declaration date listed in table 2

For Livestock by Air

  1. the export date listed on the NOI is before the declaration date listed in table 2, and
  2. the export permit is granted before the declaration date listed in table 2

Exports of feeder and slaughter livestock not listed in the table below, including feeder and slaughter livestock to Indonesia require an ESCAS.

Exporters should seek advice from the Live Animal Export Program prior to commencing any commercial arrangements or preparation of feeder and slaughter livestock for export to find out if an ESCAS is required.

Table 2 - Declared countries, live-stock and dates
Declared countries Declared Live-stock Declaration Date
Kuwait All live-stock 1 March 2012
Bahrain All live-stock 1 March 2012
Qatar All live-stock 1 March 2012
Turkey All live-stock 1 March 2012
Israel Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
Japan Cattle and Buffalo 1 September 2012
Jordan Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
Malaysia Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep, Goats and Camelids 1 September 2012
Oman Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
Philippines Cattle and Buffalo 1 September 2012
Saudi Arabia Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
Singapore Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
United Arab Emirates Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 September 2012
Brunei Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 January 2013
Mauritius Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 January 2013
Libya Cattle, Buffalo, Sheep and Goats 1 January 2013
Russia Cattle and Buffalo 1 January 2013
Vietnam Cattle and Buffalo 1 January 2013

Overview of the ESCAS Process

The licensed exporter must submit their proposed ESCAS for assessment along with the Notice of Intention (NOI) to export and Consignment Risk Management Plan (CRMP).
The ESCAS submission must:

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry uses a checklist when assessing the ESCAS supplied by a licensed exporter. Some exporters may find the information contained in the checklist useful in determining what information to provide to the department for assessment. Please note that this information is for internal use and is subject to change.

If the information submitted for the specific consignment and supply chain is satisfactory, the NOI, CRMP and ESCAS may be approved. The approval may be subject to condition(s).
Under the ESCAS, the exporter is responsible for implementing the control of the supply chain, traceability systems, animal welfare aspects, organising independent audits and any required reporting.

Failure to comply with the ESCAS or conditions of approval could result in a range of compliance measures and sanctions  including failure to receive approval for future consignments or an exporter losing their licence to export livestock. DAFF has developed a guidance document for the management of non-compliance. This document will assist industry understanding and guide departmental staff when managing, on a case by case basis, any reported non-compliance against the regulatory framework.

Internationally agreed welfare standards

Exporters must provide evidence that the livestock will be handled in accordance with internationally accepted World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) standards up to and including the point of slaughter. As part of the development of the regulatory framework, the IGWG used the OIE animal welfare standards to develop the following checklists:

The ESCAS submission must include the results assessed against this checklist and be completed by an independent auditor to demonstrate compliance with the animal welfare standards along the supply chain.

Control through the supply chain

The exporter must demonstrate they have control of the supply chain to enable the ESCAS to be successfully managed.

Attached to the submitted NOI and CRMP, the exporter must clearly explain the control of the supply chain and provide supporting documentation that provides evidence of the arrangements providing control.

In general terms, the two main options for control of the supply chain are:

  • Vertically integrated supply chain – control of ownership by parent company.
  • Formal commercial arrangements between the exporter and other participants in the supply chain (for example exporter and importer/feedlot operator, importer/transporter, importer/feedlot operator and abattoir operator).

Several variations of options are possible because of the number of commercial parties that may be involved in the export supply chain. These may include the exporter, importer, feedlot operator, transporter to the feedlot, transporter from the feedlot, holding facility and abattoir/slaughter facility.

Traceability through the supply chain

For cattle and buffalo, the exporter must provide evidence that individual animals can be identified and are able to be located at any point along the export supply chain, from the Australian registered premises through to the point of slaughter in the overseas abattoir.

The system of identification is at the discretion of the exporter but it must:

  • enable identification of individual animals
  • allow for the reconciliation of animals at each point of the supply chain
  • be capable of providing reports on individual animals and for consignments as a whole.

More information on traceability requirements for cattle and buffalo can be found at the page titled "Independent Auditing Requirements for Cattle and Buffalo".

Due to the lack of a system that uniquely identifies individual sheep and goats domestically within Australia, exporters of sheep and goats must implement a system of accountability based on the counting and reconciliation of sheep and goats at points along the supply chain. For more detail on the supply chain traceability core principles for sheep and goats, exporters are referred to the document titled: Livestock Export Supply Chain – Regulatory Approach for Sheep and Goats and the Independent Auditing Requirements for Sheep and Goats.

Reporting and accountability

For each cattle and buffalo export consignment, the exporter is required to provide assurance of the effectiveness of control throughout the supply chain, animal traceability and the welfare and handling of animals. Exporters must provide an End of Processing (EOP) report for each consignment. In addition exporters must also provide independent performance audit reports in accordance with the ECSAS approval conditions for each consignment.

The End of Processing (EOP) report excel.jpg Excel [39 KB] must be provided by the exporter for each consignment of cattle and buffalo exported:

  • within 10 days of the slaughter of the last animal in the consignment or
  • if the last animal in the consignment is not slaughtered within 180 days from the date of export:
    • within 190 days from the date of export and
    • within 10 days of being notified by DAFF that a further EOP report is required.

DAFF has developed a template for EOP reporting that exporters may find useful:

For cattle and buffalo, an independent performance audit report  Word [272 KB] must be provided at the same time as the exporter's End of Processing report for the first 5 consignments exported by an individual exporter into a supply chain. Following DAFF's receipt of 5 performance audit reports  Word [272 KB] covering all parts of the approved supply chain (including any facilities that may be added via approved variations) the frequency of ongoing independent performance audit reports for a specific supply chain will be determined by DAFF on a risk/performance basis.

More information on reporting requirements for cattle and buffalo can be found in the document titled "Independent Auditing Requirements for Cattle and Buffalo". Exporters may also find the template titled "Cattle and Buffalo Performance Audit Report Sample"  Word [272 KB] useful in ensuring that the performance audit reports submitted to DAFF meet all requirements

Similarly, for each sheep and goats export consignment, the exporter is required to provide assurance of the effectiveness of control throughout the supply chain, animal traceability and the welfare and handling of animals. Exporters require an initial independent audit prior to DAFF approving the first export of sheep / goats into a new supply chain, and must be supplied as part of the Notice of Intention to export (NOI).

For sheep and goats an End of Processing (EOP) report is not required, however independent performance audit reports are required to provide an independent assessment on whether the animal welfare, traceability and control aspects were implemented and managed in accordance with the regulatory framework during the reporting period and while Australian sheep /goats are in the exporter's supply chain. These performance audits are initially on a frequent basis, i.e. every 2 months for the first 6 months, in order to obtain a performance history. Once a performance history is established the required audit frequency will be determined using a risk based approach. At a minimum, 3 audits will be required per year, with 2 of these to occur at periods when there is a high throughput of sheep /goats and a high risk of non-compliance, i.e. during festival periods.

More information on reporting requirements for sheep and goats can be found in the document titled "Independent Auditing Requirements for Sheep and Goats".

Independent auditing

DAFF requires the supply chain to be audited by an independent auditor. The audit is to assess if the supply chain meets the "Guidance on meeting OIE Code animal welfare outcomes cattle and buffalo-version 2.2 – 20 August 2011" and "Guidance on meeting OIE Code animal welfare outcomes sheep and goats-version 3.3 21 August 2011", and that appropriate control and traceability of animals exists.

Exporters should note that DAFF requires all cattle and buffalo supply chain audits in Indonesia performed on or after 16 January 2012 to use the welfare checklist version titled "Guidance on meeting the OIE code Animal Welfare requirements" version 2.2 - 20 August 2011.

The initial schedule of independent audits is briefly outlined above in section 6 – Reporting and Accountability, however the final schedule of independent audits of supply chains will be risk based for each consignment or exporter and will cover all elements of the supply chain where required. More detailed requirements on independent audits can be found at:

A summary of the independent audit report will be made publicly available. Personal information and details of importers, feedlots and abattoirs have been withheld. See section 8 - Independent audit report summary.

The exporter must procure the services of an auditor who is independent, has no conflicts of interest, and possesses an appropriate level of competence and expertise (through qualifications and experience). The audit conducted should be consistent with relevant international standards and guidelines for auditing, be transparent, be evidence based and be conducted in an impartial, ethical and professional manner.

In assessing the explicit requirements of:

  • Independence
  • No conflict of interest
  • Competence and expertise

DAFF is requesting that evidence be provided by the exporter of current accreditation of the audit company by an appropriate authority such as a member of the International Accreditation Forum (IAF) or equivalent. This accreditation should be to an international standard (such as a standard of the International Standards Organisation) in a relevant area.

DAFF will require evidence that the auditing agency meets these requirements prior to accepting an independent audit report. To avoid delays in consideration of audit reports, DAFF suggests that the evidence of the exporter's audit agency competence and accreditation should be provided to DAFF prior to independent audits being undertaken. DAFF will then be able to provide advice on whether an auditor meets the criteria specified in the regulatory framework.

The accreditation by such national bodies provides an endorsement of the auditor's "competence, credibility, independence and integrity in carrying out its conformity assessment activities". JAS-ANZ website.

Exporters should note that audit reports must be provided to DAFF in English. A translation from a National Accreditation Authority for Translation and Interpreters (NAATI) accredited authority will also be acceptable.

Figure 1

The following diagram demonstrates the relationship between the national accreditation body, the auditor and the auditor's role in checking that the exporter supply chain meets the ESCAS requirements.

Figure 3 visually represents independent auditing structure and requirements.

Independent audit report summary

In line with the IGWG report, DAFF is required to publish a summary (outcomes) of the independent audit report with personal information and details of importers, feedlots and abattoirs excluded (e.g. details of all parties and facilities in the importing country such as importers, feedlots/holding facilities and abattoirs/slaughter facilities, facility capacity, individual auditor names). The exporter must provide the outcomes of the audit to DAFF in a format ready for publication on the DAFF website as part of each initial ESCAS and performance audit report submission.

The following documents provide an example of the information that should be provided in the summary document.

For more general information and background visit the Action on Live Exports website.

Exporters are encouraged to email the Animal Export Reform branch or phone 02 6272 5842 for more information about the changes.

Last reviewed:
16 May 2012
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