The LPA National Vendor Declaration (NVD) is a signed, legal document that guarantees the safety of red meat products and enables the traceability of those products along each link in the value chain. This system ensures market access, food safety and maintains the solid reputation of the industry in line with customer expectations.

Incorrectly completed NVDs can be recorded as a non-conformance with the LPA program and may lead to suspension from the LPA program.

Knowing how to complete your LPA NVD so it is clear, complete and correct is essential.

This includes knowing how to correctly complete the ‘consigned to‘ and ‘destination‘ sections of the hard copy NVD and eNVD. Sometimes, the consignee and the destination may be different and have different property identification codes (PICs) and it is important that you identify this on the LPA NVD.

Hard copy NVD

In the ‘consigned to’ section, you must record the full name and address of the person and/or company that the livestock are being consigned to.

In some instances, the address given in the ‘consigned to’ section may be different to the actual physical location that the livestock are being sent to.

For example, when transporting livestock to be sold at a saleyard, the consignee is the agent and the destination is the saleyard location.

In this case, you need to ensure that the destination PIC of the saleyard and its full physical address is included in the destination section of the LPA NVD.

To locate the destination PIC for your LPA NVD:

• ask the agent or buyer before loading at the yards
• search in the NLIS database PIC register
• if using the eNVD, use the search function.

eNVD

When completing an eNVD, please ensure that consigned to and destination details are entered correctly.

The following screenshot shows where the Consigned to (1), Destination of livestock (2) and Destination PIC (3) need to be completed.

Knowing how to fill out National Vendor Declarations (NVDs) so they are clear, complete and correct is essential to ensure the food safety, traceability and integrity of Australian red meat.

Providing accurate information about your livestock on your NVD ensures that the entire supply chain can be sure that the meat you produce is safe to eat and of the highest quality.

When an NVD is not clear, complete and correct, it is considered invalid and should not be accepted by the receiver of the livestock. NVDs are a legal document and so by law, they must be accurate.

Buyers rely on the NVD to have accurate information about the livestock they purchase. Processors also rely on NVDs being completed accurately to ensure only safe food is provided to consumers. False or misleading answers on NVDs can lead to prosecution and civil action by the buyer.

If you are found to have sent incorrect or incomplete NVDs with livestock dispatched from your property during a Livestock Production Assurance (LPA) audit, you may also be issued with a Corrective Action Request (CAR) you will need to resolve with the auditor.

To ensure your NVD is clear, complete and correct, make sure you avoid the following mistakes when filling out your consignment form:

1. Illegible handwriting

If you are completing a hard copy NVD, make sure your writing is as clear and neat as possible. ISC recommends using the eNVD system – a fast, easy way to complete livestock consignments digitally – to ensure your NVD is always easy to read.

2. Ticking both ‘yes’ and ‘no’ on a question

When completing the NVD questions, you cannot tick both ‘yes’ and ‘no’ in response to the one question. If the consignment contains livestock that meet both criteria e.g. home bred and purchased livestock, you must choose the option that addresses the risk. In this example, a mix of home bred and purchased livestock, you need to select that the consignment contains purchased livestock and then select the correct time frame for purchase.

3. Not adding your signature

You must sign the declaration on the NVD. By ticking the box and signing your NVD, you are pledging that the meat from your farm has been produced safely, ethically and meets biosecurity standards – it means you stand by what you sell.  An unsigned NVD is invalid.

The transporter must also complete and sign Part B of the NVD in order for your NVD to be valid, except in Victoria, where the transport section can be left blank.

4. Making major corrections

If you make a minor mistake (e.g. change to number of head in the consignment) when filling out the NVD, cross out the mistake and write the correct information next to it. Only the person who has signed the NVD can correct a mistake and they must also put their initials next to the correction. If you make a major mistake on an NVD (e.g. incorrect description of livestock or destination details), start a new form.

All NVDs where white-out has been used to correct a mistake are deemed invalid, to minimize the possibility of others amending your NVD on your behalf without your knowledge.

5. Not completing all the NVD questions

You must complete all questions on the NVD for your NVD to be valid. The NVD questions provide vital information about food safety and the husbandry of animals every time they move along the value chain – so answering them is vital to ensuring food safety, animal welfare and biosecurity within our industry.

6. Using sample or photocopied NVDs

You cannot use sample NVDs or NVD forms you have photocopied. If you are using a hard copy NVD, it must be from a hard copy NVD book for your PIC. Each PIC must use an NVD issued to that PIC and it cannot be used for other PICs. See here for advice on completing NVDs as an agistee.

If you need to complete an LPA NVD in a hurry, the fast, free eNVD system is available 24/7 to create a digital version of the NVD using a computer, tablet or mobile phone. Watch this video to learn how to use an eNVD. Alternatively, log in to your LPA account via myMLA to start completing your eNVD now.

7. Using one NVD for separate consignments

You must use a separate NVD for each livestock consignment (livestock movement off your property) you complete. In most cases, this means that each load of livestock being transported to a different location (destination PIC) must be accompanied by its own NVD.

If you are sending a mixed consignment (e.g. a mix of home bred and purchased livestock), you can use one NVD for this consignment. Alternatively, if you can identify and/or separate the mixed consignment (and the receiver is aware of the split) you can use two NVDs –one for each group. In some cases, there may be a marketing advantage to doing this.

Learn how to complete an NVD

To learn how to complete an NVD so it is clear, complete and correct, watch this video below.