Processing of Meat for Wild Game (Harvesting and Processing)

Applicable Legislation

All meat businesses in Western Australian must comply with:

• Food Act 2008 (external site)
• Food Regulations 2009 (external site)
• Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code (external site)

The following commodities need to comply with the Australian Standards shown below:

*Further processing and transportation of wild game meat falls under AS4696 and is not covered under AS4464.

Registration

The meat business needs to register with the Local Government Authority where the premises is located (section 110 of the Food Act 2008).

The meat business also needs to advise the Department of Health and include a copy of the design plans for assessment to ensure construction and fit out complies with AS4464.

Definitions

The enforcement agency - is the local government where the premises is located and is responsible for compliance and enforcement of the requirements of the Food Act 2008, Food Regulations 2009, and Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

The controlling authority for domestic meat processors is the WA Department of Health under the Food Regulations 2009.  The controlling authority for export licensed establishments is the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

The controlling authority is responsible for regulation of the Australian Standards adopted under Regulation 18 of the Food Regulations 2009and also approves the Food Safety Management System for each premises including the conduct of regular audits against the adopted standards.

Requirements for premises

Once a business has notified the department of a premises in this category, they are required to undertake the following steps:

1. Ensure that the premises complies with the requirements of the relevant Australian Standard.
2. Demonstrate skills and knowledge in Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) procedures and seek training in HACCP procedures as soon as practical. Two people in each premises need to be HACCP trained and at least one HCCP trained person needs to be available during operations.
3. Develop a HACCP based approved arrangement document supported by a hygiene/cleaning and vermin plan for the premises. Other documented support programs are also necessary. For example, chemical handling, training of staff and control of allergens. Contact the Department of Health for further information.
4. Provide a copy of the HACCP based approved arrangement document to the department for desk auditing. The department will provide a copy of the report to the relevant local government. Businesses can send their programs to foodsafety@health.wa.gov.au or via mail to PO Box 8172, PERTH BUSINESS CENTRE WA 6849.
5. Introduce microbiological monitoring of products based on a suitable validation/verification methodology. The controlling authority requires a minimum level of testing to occur based on the scope of the business.
6. The business will be audited against the requirements outlined in the Australian Standards and Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. This may be carried out together with the local government Environmental Health Officer. The auditing frequency for a newly listed premises is every 3 months for the first year or until the auditor has deemed that the FSMS is adequate for the premises and substantially being followed. An audit report is provided to the premises including details of any corrective action requests to be undertaken. Audits are ongoing and the frequency depends on previous audit performances. The auditing does not replace inspections from the local government officers which may occur unannounced.

Additional information

Field Harvester means a person who has been approved by the controlling authority to be competent in harvesting, conducting harvest inspection, bleeding and field dressing of wild game carcases for human consumption.

Wild game carcases for human consumption must undergo postmortem inspections by an authorised officer (hyperlink) at wild game processing premises.

Further processing of meats is a process applied to meat to form a new product with different characteristics and flavour. For example, curing, heat treatment, drying, canning, or fermenting.

Rendering is also included as a further process but is additionally reviewed under the Rendering standards (AS5008) and is contextual to the process and product.