Page 6 - Demo

How producers can prepare and respond to trespassers
A CRITICAL priority for Australian Pork Lim- ited is protecting you, your family, staff and pigs from the impacts of trespassing by anti- animal farming activist groups.
has occurred are also im- perative.
a trespasser or believe a trespasser has entered the property.
mals have been impacted, any unknown vehicles including registration numbers and evidence left behind including surveil- lance equipment.
Preparedness is your most effective defence – however ensuring you are equipped with techniques to diffuse trespass situ- ations and are aware of your rights after a trespass
Farm owners and their representatives have the right to refuse entry to anyone, irrespective of whether they have iden- tification, and animal rights groups and other members of the public have no authority to carry out property inspections under the relevant Act of any state or territory.
If faced with an anti- animal farming activist on your farm, employees should not attempt to ap- prehend perpetrators.
To appraise the health impact for your piggery, we recommend ringing your local vet for advice and obtain an assessment of the animals affected in the trespass as well as arranging a farm audit through your state depart- ment of agriculture or the animal welfare regulator such as the RSPCA.
Intrusions by trespassers compromise animal wel- fare and the biosecurity standards applied on your farm – ultimately, threat- ening the health of your pig herd.
Employees should be ap- propriately trained in the corrective actions to take in the event of a trespass situation.
The health and safety of your herd are critical in the time immediately after a trespass situation.
It is important to de- escalate the situation.
Regardless of their mo- tives, individuals who trespass on your farm should be made aware via clear signage that they do not have permission to be on farm and could be prosecuted, and that there is a serious risk of a biosecurity breach if they continue onto the farm.
Therefore only owners, managers or supervisors should engage with tres- passers – all other people should be requested not to engage in conversation.
The responsibility for farm security should be shared across all em- ployees.
Recording important de- tails such as times, dates or what you saw will also be helpful for the police.
Ensure staff understand their rights and responsi- bilities if they encounter
During and following a farm trespass ensure you report damage to your property, how your ani-
The media phone num- bers are available at aus- tralianpork.com.au/about- us/contact/
Contact police on 000 and state to the operator: “There are trespassers on my farm, and I require police to attend now.”
Finally, be mindful of incoming media enquiries – act in a reasonable, ap- propriate and non-phys- ical manner.
You can photograph or video the trespass, how- ever try to avoid touching the site before the police arrive.
APL is happy to assist you with any media en- quiries you may receive, allowing you to shield yourself and your staff, to focus on your farming business and the welfare of your pigs.
Learnings from the new team in the new year
AS the new year begins, I would like to share a few insights from the producer relations team, formed in the second half of 2020.
two-way communica- tion and create a clear primary contact point for producers.
regular updates on re- search initiatives to pro- ducers through its com- munication channels.
Noted in the December issue of APN, the pro- ducer relations team was created based on producer feedback that Australian Pork Limited should develop stronger
Initially phone calls were made to member producers on a regular basis, allowing for a sizeable transfer of in- formation.
With regular calls, we have learned the best times of the day and week to call producers, about their individual routines and their way of operating.
The team learnt a great deal about the way farms operate, specific challenges on certain farms or in certain loca- tions, and about the pro- ducers and their family in a few cases.
Many producers have provided positive feed- back on the interactions and look forward to reg- ular conversations.
In return, we have been able to offer in- formation on industry trends and provide di- rect links to other teams at APL for details.
APL industry liaison officers Tony Abel and Kirsty Richards have been extremely ac- tive networking with producers, processors, wider industry and government on African swine fever prepared- ness and biosecurity in general.
Specific calls to pro- ducers in November about the awareness and adoption of 10 key research initiatives was a an important learning for the team and for the producers, who as a result requested over 260 of the one-page fact sheets for potential on-farm adoption of the proposals.
We are anticipating taking calls from even more producers during 2021, and continue to welcome requests for information as well as feedback on how APL can continue to provide the best service to its producers.
In 2021, APL will continue to provide
by PAUL BONIGHTON Director Producer Relations
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Page 6 – Australian Pork Newspaper, January 2021
www.porknews.com.au