NLIS and Carcase Feedback		AG1140
Kellyanne Semple, Bendigo Updated: June 2006
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The National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) is Australia's system for the permanent identification and tracing of cattle for market access, food safety and disease control purposes.

The NLIS offers many benefits to beef producers including the ability to link each animal to its carcase feedback data. This can assist with breeding, nutrition, marketing, and benchmarking decisions, as well as on-farm and pre-slaughter management strategies.

This Agnote describes how to access and use carcase feedback on the NLIS database.

NLIS carcase feedback is available if you have:

• NLIS identified cattle that you have bred and were sold as stores and slaughtered in a Victorian abattoir.
• Sold NLIS identified cattle direct to a Victorian processor, and you or the abattoir has transferred those cattle to the abattoir PIC.
• Sold NLIS identified cattle at a saleyard that were subsequently slaughtered in a Victorian abattoir.

• Individual animal carcase data.
• Easy to use individual animal records.
• Quick and efficient data transfer from the processor.
• Scope to identify and improve genetic traits.
• Scope to identify and improve management practices for better returns.
• Scope to identify factors affecting carcase quality.
• Reduced transcription and recording errors.

• Date of Slaughter.
• NLIS Tag details (RFID and NLIS numbers).
• Vendor's Property Identification Code (PIC).
• Hot Standard Carcase Weight (HSCW) or weight at slaughter – this is the dressed weight of a carcase prior to chilling and after the AUS-MEAT standard trim has been applied.
• Body Number.

1.	Display on Browser.
	An example of the data producers will see on screen is as follows:
2.	CSV format (Comma Separated Values).
	A CSV file is a type of file, which uses a standard comma (,) to separate pieces (fields) of information. A CSV file can be created using either Windows Notepad or Microsoft Excel.
3.	ISFF format (Industry Standard Formatted File).
	ISFF is a standard format used in the beef industry for data transfer. ISFF formats are provided for integration of data into other commercial software packages a producer may be using. CSV or ISFF can be selected if data is to be downloaded and integrated with on-farm software applications for complete on-farm management of records. Producers can access the carcase feedback facility 24 hours a day to review the carcase details of their cattle. A producer has six months to download or view feedback on slaughtered cattle before it is archived.

Body number	a unique number assigned to each carcase by the processor.
Bruise score	relates to the measurement of bruises at specific sites on the carcase.
Carcase Sex	the sex of the animal as defined by AUS-MEAT. Can be bull (B), male (M), female (F) or for lots of cattle, mixed (MI)
Dentition	a measure of the number of permanent incisor teeth, which is roughly correlated to the age of the animal.
Fat measurement	the depth measurement of subcutaneous fat, in millimetres, generally at the P8 site (rump).
Grade	The abattoir grade which indicates how the beast has graded and hence the price paid per kg. MSA accredited producers may receive other information related to how the carcase graded, as per the boning room requirements of the processor.
Hot Standard Carcase Weight (HSCW)	the dressed weight of a carcase prior to chilling and after the AUS-MEAT standard trim has been applied. (Some plants provide weight at slaughter as an alternative to HSCW).
Kill date	the slaughter date for each animal.
NLIS Breeder Tag	A white NLIS approved device used to permanently identify cattle while they are still on their property of birth.
NLIS number	Unique number printed on NLIS devices consisting of:
		8 character PIC of the property on which the device is to be used, 2 alpha characters identifying the manufacturer and device type, eg NLIS Breeder or Post-breeder Tag, alpha character for year of supply, and 4 or 5 character serial number, which if a producer wishes, may be replicated on the visually read management tag.
NLIS Post-breeder Tag	An orange NLIS approved device for the permanent identification of cattle that are no longer on their property of birth that are not already identified with an NLIS Breeder or Post-breeder Tag.
PIC	Property Identification Code, formerly referred to as the 'tail tag number'. This is a unique 8 character code assigned by State/Territory Departments of Agriculture/Primary Industries, or in New South Wales by the Rural Lands Protection Board, to a livestock producing property.
Price	The price per kg paid for the animal determined by the slaughter floor measurements of the carcase against the grid supplied by the processor prior to slaughter. This price is then multiplied by the HSCW to determine the gross value of the body.
RFID number	RFID number - a unique radio frequency identifier, encoded on the microchip embedded in each NLIS which, when read electronically, has 16 characters in the following format: 982 000001234567
		Manufacturer's code -3 numeric characters ie 982 Space-1 character Individual chip number 12 numeric characters 000001234567.