Meat Processing Project
Menu: Click across the green arrows to view active and completed project stages. Consultation takes place at every stage of the project.Case for change
Listed below are the skills priorities that have been identified for the meat processing industry in 2018. These skills needs were identified in the 2018-2021 Meat IRC Skills Forecast and Proposed Schedule of Work and three separate Cases for Change. Qualifications, skills sets and units of competency from the AMP Australian Meat Processing Training Package will be reviewed as part of this project work to address these skill needs.
Development of new units in TACCP and VACCP
This Case for Change provides evidence of industry and regulatory support for the development of one new unit to support quality assurance workers in the analysis of Threat Assessment Critical Control Points (TACCP) and Vulnerability Assessment Critical Control Points (VACCP) – a requirement for British Retail Consortium (BRC) and other proprietary quality assurance systems. The BRC Global Standards are used extensively by Australia’s international meat customers, and Australian meat processors are regularly audited against these standards.
Development of a food-safe pest control management program
This Case for Change provides evidence of industry and regulatory support for the development of new units and a skill set in pest control management for quality assurance workers in a meat processing premises.
Remove complexity and add value to material handling through traceability of products
This Case for Change provides evidence of industry support for the identification and/or development of three new units and two skill sets to address skills requirements in meat storage and handling.
Animal Health Data Collection
The monitoring and control of a range of diseases have commercial drivers for processors, including improving carcase yield and profitability. For producers, control of diseases and conditions enables the value of individual animals to increase. There is a need to develop a new unit of competency for the collection, monitoring and evaluation of animal health data.
Download the IRC Skills Forecast (see page 79)
Operation and management of biogas facilities in a processing plant
As the capture of biogas becomes more common, company safety and regulatory responsibilities are increasing. There is a need for companies to manage their biogas risks.
Download the IRC Skills Forecast (see page 77)
Improving meat quality (by identifying secondary sexual characteristics in beef)
There are small differences in meat palatability between animal sexes. As a result, some customers now require evidence that meat processing personnel have the skills to recognise and assess the secondary sexual characteristics of male cattle.
Download the IRC Skills Forecast (see page 83)
Conduct a workplace incident investigation
There is a range of existing units of competency related to conducting investigations. However, these are not reflective of where the activity might be conducted in a meat processing enterprise. Investigation processes apply to workplace incidents or injury, but also in incidents of animal welfare, environmental incidents or port-of-entry rejection and enterprises need to be able to establish a cause and put in place preventative and corrective actions.
Download the IRC Skills Forecast (see page 74)
Preparation of market reports for sheep and beef
To support greater transparency across the supply chain, market reports at the point of purchase in saleyards need to adopt a nationally standardised language for the description of livestock put up for sale. It is proposed that two units of competency are developed for the preparation of market reports – one for sheep, and one for cattle.
Project Plan
Project Scope
This project will review and develop units of competency and skill sets within the AMP Australian Meat Processing Training Package to address skills gaps across eight different areas, listed below:
Food-safe pest control management
There is a need to develop new units and a skill set in pest control management for quality assurance workers in a meat processing premises.
Material handling through traceability of products
Units and skill sets will be reviewed and developed to address skills requirements in meat storage and handling.
Animal Health Data Collection
A unit will be developed for the collection, monitoring and evaluation of animal health data, to support the current national initiatives to establish nationally consistent identification, monitoring and evaluation of data relating to diseases and conditions.
Operation and management of biogas facilities in a processing plant
As the capture of biogas becomes more common, company safety and regulatory responsibilities are increasing. Two new units will be developed to address the skills required to manage the safe operation of biogas facilities in a processing plant.
Improving meat quality (by identifying secondary sexual characteristics in beef)
There are small differences in meat palatability between animal sexes. As a result, a new unit of competency will be developed to support the skills and knowledge requirements for identifying secondary sexual characteristics in beef.
Conduct a workplace incident investigation
There is a range of existing units of competency related to conducting investigations. However, these are not reflective of where the activity might be conducted in a meat processing enterprise. A new unit for the planning, implementation and reporting of an investigation into a workplace incident in the meat processing industry is proposed for development.
Preparation of market reports for sheep and beef
To support greater transparency across the supply chain, market reports at the point of purchase in saleyards need to adopt a nationally standardised language for the description of livestock put up for sale. It is proposed that two units of competency are developed for the preparation of market reports – one for sheep, and one for cattle.
Register your interest in the projectSubscribe to the Skills Impact newsletter to keep informed about project updates and opportunities to provide input and feedback. Make sure to select ‘Meat Processing’ as your industry of interest on the subscription form. |
Relevant Occupations
- Pest control operators and supervisors
- Quality assurance officers and managers
- Abattoir or food processing labourer
- Personnel responsible for preparing market reports
- Production workers and supervisors
- WHS officers
- Plant engineers
- Environmental officers
- Load-out operators and supervisors
- Stock purchasers
- Stock and station agents
- Agricultural journalists
Key Deliverables
Review and development of meat processing skill sets and related units of competency.
Timeline
August 2018
Initial scoping
September 2018
Development of draft units and skill sets
October 2018
Drafts available for broad consultation
January 2019
Validation of final drafts
January 2019
Finalisation of Training Package components
February 2019
Independent Quality Assurance, and Edit and Equity review of Training Package components
February 2019
IRC consideration for sign-off and submission for endorsement
Project Team
| Jenny Kroonstuiver | CEO, MINTRAC [email protected] |
| Sharon Fitzgerald | Project Officer, MINTRAC [email protected] |
| Rachel Murrell | Project Officer, MINTRAC [email protected] |
Skill sets and units
Below is a list of skill sets and units proposed for development as part of this project.
Skill sets that may be developed as part of this project include (but are not limited to):
- Pest Control Monitoring Skill Set
- Meat Processing Warehouse Operator Skill Set
- Meat Processing Warehouse Supervisor Skill Set
Units that may be developed as part of this project include (but are not limited to):
- Develop and implement a pest control program in a meat processing establishment
- Undertake pest control in a food processing premises
- Develop and implement a TACCP and VACCP plan in a food processing premises
- Handle meat product in cold stores
- Follow electronic labelling and traceability systems in a meat processing establishment
- Follow hygiene, sanitation and quality assurance requirements when handling meat products in cold stores
- Plan, prepare and report a workplace incident investigation
- Operate biogas collection facilities
- Manage biogas collection facilities
- Collect, monitor and evaluate animal health data
- Prepare a market report – sheep
- Prepare a market report – beef
- Identify secondary sexual characteristics – beef
Subject Matter Experts
Subject Matter Experts will be drawn on throughout this project to help review and draft the revised units, skill sets and qualifications.
If you are interested in applying to be a subject matter expert and can volunteer your time to this project, please email details of your expertise to [email protected]
Stakeholder Consultation Process
A list of key stakeholder organisations has been identified for this project. MINTRAC will ensure contact is made with each of these organisations during the development of this project to seek their involvement and their views on the draft units.
If you are aware of an organisation that you think should be involved, please contact the project team to ensure they are contacted by us.
Of course, all and any interested industry participants are encouraged to engage in the consultation of this project, when the draft units are available for feedback via this webpage. Consultation is not limited to the organisations on this list. This list simply helps us to identify those organisations that, because of their industry role, size or specialty, are likely to have a key interest in the development and outcomes of this project.
Opportunities for stakeholder input
Stakeholder input is appreciated throughout this project. The documents will be drafted in consultation with Subject Matter Experts and their networks. Opportunities to provide targeted feedback will occur when the draft materials are made available in October 2018. However, your feedback is welcomed at any time and will help us in drafting the new units.
It is important that training provides a skilled and flexible workforce for the future. The units need to reflect real work experience and requirements. So if you work in the sector, MINTRAC would love your input and help. Please feel free to register your interest for project updates and consultation opportunities by following the newsletter subscription link below. Alternatively, please feel free to contact Jenny Kroonstuiver on [email protected]
The Meat Industry Reference Committee (IRC) will oversee this project, as part of their responsibility to support engagement with the sector and to ensure the project meets industry stakeholder needs.
Development
Consultation is underway with Subject Matter Experts to draft new units of competency and skills sets that address skills gaps across the following areas.
- Food-safe pest control management
- Material handling through traceability of products
- Animal Health Data Collection
- Operation and management of biogas facilities in a processing plant
- Improving meat quality (by identifying secondary sexual characteristics in beef)
- Conduct a workplace incident investigation
- Preparation of market reports for sheep and beef
Broad stakeholder consultation is scheduled to commence in late October, when the draft units and skill sets will be available for comment on this webpage (under the ‘Drafts Available’ menu above). Your input is welcome, please feel free to register your interest to keep informed of project updates and when draft materials are available for feedback.
Please click on the ‘Project Plan’ menu above to read more about the project scope, timeline, deliverables and to see the list of units and skill sets proposed for development.
Register your interest in the projectSubscribe to the Skills Impact newsletter to keep informed about project updates and opportunities to provide input and feedback. Make sure to select ‘Meat Processing’ as your industry of interest on the subscription form. |
Drafts Available
Thank you to all those who provided feedback on the draft units of competency and skill sets. The drafts were made available on the Skills Impact website for broad stakeholder review from 1 – 19 November 2018.
Feedback was sought on whether the draft units and skill sets reflect the current skills standards and practices of industry, and whether job functions are accurately described. They have been developed in consultation with industry subject matter and technical experts, to address skills gaps across the following areas.
- Animal Health Data Collection
- Operation and management of biogas facilities in a processing plant
- Improving meat quality (by identifying secondary sexual characteristics in beef)
- Conduct a workplace incident investigation
- Preparation of market reports for sheep and beef
- Food-safe pest control management
- Development of a new unit is TACCP and VACCP
- Material handling through traceability of products
Feedback will inform the work on the final drafts which will be available for industry validation in late November 2018.
| AMPX230 Undertake pest control in a food processing establishment | View unit |
| AMPA416 Develop, implement and evaluate a pest control program in a meat processing establishment | View unit |
| AMPSS00062 Food Processing Pest Control Skill Set | View skill set |
The draft documents can be downloaded in Microsoft Word format by clicking here.
| AMPSS00063 Meat Processing Warehouse Operator Skill Set | View skill set |
| AMPSS00064 Meat Processing Warehouse Supervisor Skill Set | View skill set |
| AMPX219 Follow electronic labelling and traceability systems in a meat processing establishment | View unit |
| AMPX314 Handle meat product in cold stores | View unit |
| AMPX315 Follow hygiene, sanitation and quality assurance requirements when handling meat products | View unit |
The draft documents can be downloaded in Microsoft Word format by clicking here.
Register your interest in the projectSubscribe to the Skills Impact newsletter to keep informed about project updates and opportunities to provide input and feedback. Make sure to select ‘Meat Processing’ as your industry of interest on the subscription form. |
Validation
Thank you to those who participated in the validation process for the final draft units of competency and skill sets.
The final drafts will shortly progress through to the Finalisation stage of the project which includes quality assurance of the documents and review and feedback from the State/Territory Training Authorities. They will then be forwarded to the Meat Industry Reference Committee (IRC) for consideration and sign off, before being submitted to the Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC) to consider and approve for publication on training.gov.au.
Validation means checking and confirming that the documents are logical and factually accurate. Views were sought on whether the final draft units and skill sets accurately reflect the current industry skills standards, knowledge and practices and whether job functions are accurately described.
Feedback was collected on the following draft units of competency and skills sets from 1 – 19 November 2018, under the ‘Drafts Available’ stage and then again from 9 – 23 January 2019 as part of the Validation process. A description of how the feedback from the ‘Drafts Available’ stage has been consideration and applied in the final drafts can be downloaded below. Please click the ‘Download Summary of Feedback, Responses and Actions’ button.
| AMPA414 Manage the collection, monitoring and reporting of animal health data from a meat processing plant | Download final draft unit |
| AMPA3137 Operate biogas collection facilities | Download final draft unit |
| AMPA411 Manage biogas collection facilities | Download final draft unit |
| AMPA3138 Identify secondary sexual characteristics – beef | Download final draft unit |
| AMPX428 Plan, conduct and report a workplace incident investigation | Download final draft unit |
| AMPA3139 Prepare Market Reports Cattle | Download final draft unit |
| AMPA3140 Prepare Market Reports Sheep | Download final draft unit |
Click here to download a zipped folder of all units in this group.
| AMPX230 Undertake pest control in a food processing establishment | Download final draft unit |
| AMPX430 Develop, implement and evaluate a pest control program in a meat processing establishment | Download final draft unit |
| AMPSS00062 Food Processing Pest Control Skill Set | Download final draft skill set |
Click here to download a zipped folder of all units in this group.
| AMPSS00063 Meat Processing Warehouse Operator Skill Set | Download final draft skill set |
| AMPSS00064 Meat Processing Warehouse Supervisor Skill Set | Download final draft skill set |
| AMPX219 Follow electronic labelling and traceability systems in a meat processing establishment | Download final draft unit |
| AMPX314 Handle meat product in cold stores | Download final draft unit |
| AMPX315 Follow hygiene, sanitation and quality assurance requirements when handling meat product in cold stores | Download final draft unit |
Additional Units
As part of an independent quality assurance process for the 12 units and three skill sets described above, it was identified by the project team, and supported by the Meat IRC, that major edits had been recommended for two units (AMPA416 Oversee humane handling of animals and AMPA417 Conduct an animal welfare audit of a meat processing plant). The unit for developing and implementing a TACCP and VACCP plan also had further changes. As such, these three units also underwent consultation to bring them in line with industry requirements.
Draft versions of these three units were available between 12 – 26 March 2019. Feedback was received from two organisations, a registered training organisation, and a state government body. These drafts were revised and made available for validation and comment between 4-18 April 2019. A description of how feedback has been considered and applied in these final drafts can be downloaded below. Please click the ‘Download Summary of Feedback, Responses and Actions’ button.
Click here to download a zipped folder of all units in this group.
| Unit code and title | Proposed changes | Link |
| AMPA416 Oversee humane handling of animals | Previously AMPA411. PC 1.4 was updated to include the word ‘monitor’, to become ‘Oversee and monitor facilities and procedures for handling and restraining animals according to workplace and regulatory requirements’; a new PC 1.5 was added for ‘Implement corrective actions when handling of animals or when facilities are not according to workplace and regulatory requirements’; the Element for overseeing facilities, equipment and people involved with the handling of animals was deleted; and where applicable to Performance Evidence requirements, ‘monitor effective stunning and bleeding where applicable’ has been added; ‘the impact of stress’ has also been added as a Knowledge evidence requirement. | View final draft unit |
| AMPA417 Conduct an animal welfare audit of a meat processing plant | Previously AMPA412. It was recommended that the prerequisite unit be changed from the superseded MTMP2010A Apply animal welfare and handling requirements to the more recent AMPA2006 Apply animal welfare and handling requirements. | View final draft unit |
| AMPX429 Develop and implement a TACCP and VACCP plan | This unit is intended to be a cross-sector unit, so the requirement in the assessment conditions that ‘skills must be demonstrated in an operating meat processing plant’ was removed. The wording for Performance Criteria (PC) 3.4 was changed slightly to replace ‘Develop’ with ‘Implement’, in relation to ‘implementing a food fraud mitigation plan to specify the methods of controlling food fraud vulnerabilities’. | View final draft unit |
Register your interest in the projectSubscribe to the Skills Impact newsletter to keep informed about project updates and opportunities to provide input and feedback. Make sure to select ‘Meat Processing’ as your industry of interest on the subscription form. |
Finalisation
Australian meat has a reputation for being high quality. This reputation is underpinned by clean and safe industry practices, including quality assurance programs.
Knowing where meat has come from is a crucial part of quality assurance, with some overseas markets requiring businesses to implement specific plans (TACCP and VACCP). The skills to support traceability programs are key. So too is the ability to identify and describe aspects that impact the overall quality and price of an animal. A number of factors can influence the quality of meat. Industry has developed processes to protect the quality of meat products, from contaminants, pests and food fraud.
The skills and knowledge to support some of these systems and processes were reviewed as part of this project. Working closely with industry, 13 new and two revised units of competency and three new skill sets have been developed across eight different industry areas.
These areas included animal health data collection, operating and managing biogas facilities, improving meat quality, conducting and reporting workplace incident investigations, food safe pest-control management, managing threats and vulnerabilities and material handling through traceability of products. Each of these areas are important for continued international and domestic market access for the meat industry, and for meeting regulatory requirements. The new units and skill sets will support the meat industry to remain sustainable and competitive now and into the future.
The new and revised skill sets and units of competency were approved by the Meat Industry Reference Committee (IRC) and endorsed by the Australian Industry and Skills Committee (AISC), at their meeting on 13 August 2019 (see here).
The new materials are published on the training.gov.au website, within the AMP Australian Meat Processing Training Package. They are available for use by registered training organisations (RTOs). RTOs can find information to help them adopt to the new changes in the Companion Volume, which provides additional information about the impacts of regulation and licensing implications and workplace health and safety on their training.
Summary of consultation
Extensive national consultation with industry took place to develop the new skills standards. Nineteen industry network meetings took place in every state except the NT, and two National Conferences were held in Queensland but attended by stakeholders from all states. These general consultations involved hundreds of stakeholders. Eight Technical Advisory Committees (one for each skills area) guided the developed of the skills standards, to ensure the draft units and skill sets were technically correct and relevant to the industry.
The broader industry was consulted on the draft documents at two different stages – the ‘Drafts Available’ and ‘Validation’ stages. Throughout this process feedback was collected a number of ways, via consultation workshops, online on the feedback hub, email, telephone and online surveys.
The ‘Finalisation’ stage includes the development and publishing of a validation summary for each project. A summary of feedback and how it has been considered and applied at each stage can be downloaded below.
Please find below links to the final documents, that are published on the training.gov.au website.
Click here to download the Case for Endorsement