Higher Than-expected Demand For NAIT Accreditation Under The New Standards

OSPRI’s National Manager, Quality, Compliance and Assurance, Melissa Bailey, says the surge in demand came at the end of 2022 which created some challenges in processing all the audits, but overall, it was a good sign for industry that so many individuals/organisations were getting on board with the new accreditation programme.

"The impact of the programme is already being felt. Over 300 individuals have completed online education modules in NAIT legislation and obligations. This means that the industry is more confident in the advice they provide to farmers on how to meet their NAIT obligations, and there are less errors in the NAIT system. Since launching the education modules, errors made by accredited organisations in the NAIT system have reduced by two-thirds."

Because the demand for audits surpassed our capacity at the end of the year there have been delays in completing the audit process so there are still organisations waiting to become accredited, said Ms Bailey. "We apologise for the delay but rest assured, nobody will lose their accreditation if they have started the accreditation process and completed their education modules. We will not penalise organisations for these delays. Our audit supplier is working as fast as possible to get through the backlog."

There are now 13 organisations accredited under the new Information Provider and Entities Dealing with NAIT Animals Standards. This includes the four largest Information Providers in the country. NAIT is expecting another 25 organisations to complete accreditation in the next three months. Further invitations to apply for accreditation will be sent out mid-2023 for those organisations who have not yet started the process.

"It takes a lot of time and significant effort to complete accreditation. But farmers can have peace of mind that using a provider who has been accredited under the new standards will mean that the registration and movement of their animals will happen in an accurate and timely manner," says Ms Bailey.

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