Canberra, ACT – Animal Medicines Australia (AMA), the industry body representing Australia’s animal health industry, has welcomed the opportunity to participate in the Agricultural Productivity Roundtable convened yesterday in Brisbane by the Hon Julie Collins MP, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, and Senator the Hon Anthony Chisholm, Assistant Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.
The roundtable brought together leaders from across agriculture to address the pressing need for productivity gains in the sector. AMA highlighted the critical role that animal medicines and innovation in the animal health sector can play in lifting productivity across Australia’s livestock industries.
“Animals are healthy, resilient, and free from preventable disease, are more productive animals.” said AMA Executive Director Mr Ben Stapley. “Every dollar invested in veterinary medicines, vaccines, diagnostics, and parasite control directly supports higher productivity, better product quality, reduced losses, and improved animal welfare.”
AMA emphasised several priority areas for productivity improvement through animal health:
- Investment in innovation and R&D – Fast-tracking the adoption of next-generation vaccines, disease diagnostics, methane inhibitors and reducing antimicrobial resistance to improve livestock resilience.
- Science-based regulatory efficiency – Streamlining approval processes for new animal health products while maintaining world-class safety and efficacy standards.
- Enhanced biosecurity measures – Strengthening disease prevention to reduce productivity losses from endemic and exotic animal diseases.
- Skills and capability development – Ensuring government and industry encourages and supports the next generation of veterinarians and agricultural professionals trained in the latest animal health practices.
Animal Medicines Australia welcomes Minister Collins’ and Assistant Minister Chisholm’s commitment to working collaboratively with industry to deliver productivity gains across the agricultural value chain.
“By championing science, innovation, and practical biosecurity measures, we can deliver stronger returns for producers, safeguard Australia’s food security, and maintain our position as a trusted agricultural exporter,” Mr Stapley said.
“In this context, AMA also notes the government’s detailed response to the final report on the future structure and governance arrangements for the APVMA from 2024. As an industry, we see clear opportunities to lift productivity by ensuring regulatory systems for animal health products recognise the rigorous safety measures already in place, while enabling timely access to new and innovative solutions,” Mr Stapley concluded.
Animal Medicines Australia will continue to work with government and industry stakeholders to ensure the animal health sector remains a key driver of productivity growth in Australian agriculture.
ENDS
