Formed 21 October 1998 Employees 5,185 (at April 2013) | Dissolved 18 September 2013 | |
Preceding agency Department of Primary Industries and Energy Superseding agency Department of Agriculture Jurisdiction Commonwealth of Australia | ||
The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF) was an Australian government department that existed between 1998 and 2013, when it was renamed as the Department of Agriculture. DAFF's role was to develop and implement policies and programs that ensure Australia's agricultural, fisheries, food and forestry industries remained competitive, profitable and sustainable.
Contents
DAFF policies and programs were to:
Scope
DAFF facilitated the development of self-reliant, profitable, competitive and sustainable Australian farm businesses and industries. Through consultation with industry, DAFF developed and implemented policies and programs that helped to assure product safety and integrity. Particular emphasis was placed on on-farm risk management that related to food safety.
Divisions which fell within the broader department included: Sustainable Resource Management (Fisheries), Climate Change (Drought Assistance, Australia's Farming Future, Forestry), Agricultural Productivity (FarmReady, Animal Welfare, Crops Horticulture & Wine, Food) and Trade & Market Access (Free Trade Agreements). DAFF's Biosecurity function, which was previously performed by AQIS, managed quarantine controls at Australia's borders to minimise the risk of exotic pests and diseases entering the country. DAFF also provided import and export inspection and certification to help retain Australia’s highly favourable animal, plant and human health status and wide access to overseas export markets.
At its creation, the department dealt with the following principal matters:
DAFF's biosecurity role
DAFF managed quarantine controls at Australia's borders to minimise the risk of exotic pests and diseases entering the country. DAFF also provided import and export inspection and certification to help retain Australia’s highly favourable animal, plant and human health status and wide access to overseas export markets.
DAFF continuously looked to improve the effectiveness of the quarantine effort by working closely with other areas within DAFF to manage Australia’s biosecurity system. The Department also worked closely with other Australian Government agencies – such as Australian Customs and Border Protection Service, Department of Health and Ageing, Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ) and state/territory governments – to support their management of post–border detections and incursions of quarantine pests and diseases, and to support our own verification and certification activities for agriculture and food products.