We have a commitment to ensure exporters deliver acceptable animal welfare outcomes.
We investigate all alleged non-compliance with the Exporter Supply Chain Assurance System (ESCAS).
We take all allegations seriously.
Where necessary, the department acts immediately to address animal welfare issues.
Our process
Find out more about our compliance investigation process.
Publishing reports
When we complete an investigation, we publish a report.
We will not release information if doing so could prejudice:
- the conduct of an investigation
- subsequent legal action in relation to an incident.
This includes information requested under the Freedom of Information Act 1982.
We do not release footage or images of these investigations. This type of content may fall outside accepted community standards. We have a responsibility to everyone who may access this information, including children. We want to ensure they do not see images they might find upsetting or disturbing.
Definitions of terms
Here are definitions of the terms we use to help you understand the status of an investigation. We use these terms to identify what step the report is at.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Report under assessment | Under assessment to see if we need to complete an investigation |
| Assessment completed | We have assessed the information. We have determined a formal investigation is not required. A statement summarising the assessment is available. |
| Investigation in progress | The investigation is underway. It may take several months to:
|
| Investigation complete | We have finalised the investigation. A copy of the report and any administrative actions taken are available. If there is evidence of criminal offence, a separate investigation may be underway. |
Recent and ongoing investigations
You can access ESCAS reports from 2019 here. To access reports completed before 2019 see the National Library of Australia’s Trove archive.
| Report No. | Type of Report or Complaint | Alleged Issue | Date reported to the Department | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 193 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Jordan. Non-compliance relating to infrastructure, handling and slaughter identified. | 5 September 2023 | Investigation in progress. |
| 192 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliant handling of sheep during discharge in Jordan. | 27 June 2023 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2023 – 30 September 2023 |
| 191 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Oman. Sheep were observed outside approved supply chains. | 28 May 2023 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2023 – 30 September 2023 |
NOTE: For the period 1 April to 30 June 2023, no investigations were completed. See ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 April to 30 June 2023.
| Report No. | Type of Report or Complaint | Alleged Issue | Date reported to the Department | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 190 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to the United Arab Emirates. Non-compliant handling and loading/unloading from transport vehicles identified. | 18 July 2022 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 October 2022 – 31 December 2022 |
NOTE: For the period 1 July to 30 September 2022, no investigations were completed. See ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July to 30 September 2022.
| Report No. | Type of Report or Complaint | Alleged Issue | Date reported to the Department | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 189 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Jordan. Non-compliant handling and slaughter identified. | 28 July 2021 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 188 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Indonesia. Cattle were observed outside approved supply chains. | 27 July 2021 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 187 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to the United Arab Emirates. Sheep were observed outside approved supply chains. | 26 July 2021 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 186 | Complaint from PETA | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards for cattle in Indonesia. Non-compliant handling and slaughter identified. | 25 June 2021 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 January 2023 – 31 March 2023 |
| 185 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Vietnam. Cattle were moved to ESCAS approved facilities outside the exporter’s supply chain. | 2 February 2021 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
NOTE: For the period 1 January to 30 June 2021, no investigations were completed. See ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 January – 31 March 2021 and ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 April – 30 June 2021.
| Report No. | Type of Report or Complaint | Alleged Issue | Date reported to the Department | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 184 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Vietnam. Cattle were moved to facilities outside the exporter’s supply chain. | 7 December 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 183 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Vietnam. Reported evidence of cattle flooding at one abattoir. | 11 September 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 182 | Complaint from a third party | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Vietnam. A third party reported cattle outside of approved supply chains and potential flooding of cattle. | 25 August 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 181 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Israel and Gaza. Animals were observed outside approved supply chains. | 11 August 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 October – 31 December 2020 |
| 180 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards for cattle in Indonesia. Non-compliant handling and slaughter identified. | 7 August 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July 2021 – 30 June 2022 |
| 179 | Self reported by exporter |
Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Jordan. Animals were observed outside the approved supply chain. A subsequent report was received from Animals Australia on 31 July 2020 on the same issue. |
28 July 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 October – 31 December 2020 |
| 178 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Kuwait. Animals were observed outside approved supply chains. | 23 July 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July – 30 September 2020 |
| 177 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS control and animal welfare standards for sheep in Kuwait. During discharge of a consignment in Kuwait, sheep were removed from the loading platform and placed into a ute. The staff moving the sheep to the ute were observed pulling a sheep by its leg. | 6 May 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July – 30 September 2020 |
| 176 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS control standards for cattle in Vietnam. Cattle were moved to facilities outside the exporter’s supply chain. | 20 April 2020 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 July – 30 September 2020 |
NOTE: For the period 1 April to 30 June 2020, no investigations were completed. See ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 April – 30 June 2020.
| Report No. | Type of Report or Complaint | Alleged Issue | Date reported to the Department | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 175 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare requirements for buffalo exported to Vietnam at an ESCAS approved abattoir. | 31 December 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 December 2019 – 31 March 2020 |
| 174 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS control and traceability standards for cattle in Vietnam. Cattle were moved to facilities outside the exporter’s supply chain and have lost traceability. | 30 October 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 September – 30 November 2019 |
| 173 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards during discharge of a consignment of cattle in the Philippines. | 3 June 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 172 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Indonesia. Animals observed outside the approved supply chain, with non-compliant handling and slaughter identified. | 13 August 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 December 2019 – 31 March 2020 |
| 171 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Malaysia. Animals were observed outside approved supply chains. | 12 August 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 170 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Kuwait. Animals were observed outside approved supply chains. | 5 August 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 169 | Complaint from Animals Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for sheep exported to Kuwait. Animals were observed outside approved supply chains. | 2 August 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 December 2019 – 31 March 2020 |
| 168 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards during discharge of a consignment in Kuwait. | 18 June 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 167 | Complaint from RSPCA Australia | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS requirements for cattle exported to Israel. | 19 June 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 166 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards during discharge of a consignment in Israel. | 17 April 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 June 2019 – 31 August 2019 |
| 165 | Independent Observer | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS animal welfare standards during discharge of a consignment in Indonesia. | 10 April 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 March 2019 – 31 May 2019 |
| 164 | Self reported by exporter | Report of non-compliance with ESCAS control, traceability and animal welfare requirements for cattle exported to Vietnam. Cattle were moved to facilities outside the exporter’s supply chain and have lost traceability. | 2 May/10 May 2019 | ESCAS Regulatory Performance Report 1 March 2019 – 31 May 2019 |