Tenders

The Australian Beef Sustainability Framework (ABSF) aims to provide a transparent, evidence-based assessment of the Australian beef industry's sustainability performance. It tracks progress against a range of indicators covering four key themes—Best Animal Care, Environmental Stewardship, Economic Resilience, and People and the Community—and reports on issues that are most important to those with a stake in the beef value chain.

The ABSF is designed to demonstrate the industry's commitment to continuous improvement, accountability, and responsible production practices, while helping to maintain market access and stakeholder confidence. By measuring and reporting sustainability outcomes across the entire beef value chain, the ABSF also helps inform industry investment priorities and supports constructive engagement with stakeholders on future sustainability challenges and opportunities.

The Australian dairy and beef industries face ongoing challenges in creating economically viable and scalable pathways for non-replacement dairy calves. Many dairy producers, particularly smaller and land-constrained businesses, are unable to achieve the scale, infrastructure, labour capacity, or consistency required to rear calves to meet the needs of downstream beef supply chains. This can result in fragmented calf-rearing systems, inconsistent animal quality, limited market certainty, duplicated infrastructure investment, and reduced value capture across the supply chain.

Through previous CalfWays initiatives, industry stakeholders identified a potential opportunity to improve supply chain coordination through a cooperative, hub-and-spoke calf-rearing model. A regional calf-rearing facility could aggregate calves from multiple farms, apply consistent welfare, biosecurity and production standards, provide access to specialised calf-rearing expertise, and deliver a more reliable supply of fit-for-purpose cattle to the beef sector.

However, significant uncertainty remains regarding the technical feasibility, commercial viability, financial sustainability, governance arrangements, workforce requirements, and investment readiness of such a model in the Australian context. Gardiner Foundation and the CalfWays collaboration (Dairy Australia and MLA) are seeking an experienced consultant to undertake an independent feasibility study and business case to determine whether a greenfield cooperative calf-rearing facility represents a viable, scalable and investable opportunity capable of supporting long-term industry growth and stronger beef-from-dairy supply chains.

The dairy and beef industries have a significant opportunity to create greater value from non-replacement dairy calves by strengthening connections between dairy producers and beef supply chains. However, regional differences in production systems, market access, supply chain structures, and stakeholder relationships mean that pathways identified in one region may not be directly transferable to another.

Building on the successful methodology developed through the Alpine Valleys pilot, CalfWays is seeking to expand this work into Western Victoria and Gippsland to better understand region-specific opportunities, constraints, and pathways for beef from dairy animals. The project aims to generate practical insights into supply chain requirements, market demand, production economics, and pricing benchmarks while strengthening collaboration between dairy producers, backgrounders, feedlots, processors, and other supply chain participants.

The opportunity for this procurement is to engage suitably qualified consultant(s) to deliver one or more regional pilot projects that will provide evidence-based recommendations, strengthen industry relationships, and identify commercially viable and sustainable pathways for non-replacement dairy calves. The outcomes will support improved producer decision-making, greater market transparency, increased confidence to invest in calf quality, and the development of region-specific implementation strategies that can inform future CalfWays activities across Australia.

Australia’s dairy industry generates a substantial number of non-replacement dairy calves (also called surplus calves) each year. Historically many of these calves had limited value and uncertain market pathways, contributing to ongoing animal welfare and social licence challenges.

There is an opportunity to create value from these calves within commercial beef systems. With appropriate genetics, feeding and management, dairy-origin cattle can meet market specifications and deliver improved production and eating quality outcomes.

Despite this, adoption remains constrained by knowledge, confidence, market understanding and supply chain coordination.

Dairy Australia's CalfWays Roadmap aims to improve the welfare and value of non-replacement calves across the dairy industry. Complementing this work, Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and Dairy Australia are delivering the Growing Beef from Dairy (GBfD) initiative to support best practice adoption across the beef from dairy production system and strengthen commercially viable market pathways for dairy-origin cattle.

As part of the GBfD initiative, on-farm demonstration sites will be established to demonstrate practical production systems, build producer capability and support adoption through peer-to-peer learning and on-farm demonstration.

This Terms of Reference is calling for proposals to undertake a review and revision of several resources for northern beef producers.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) are calling for interested and suitably skilled applicants to tender for the position of Coordinator for Profitable Grazing Systems (PGS) program.

Profitable Grazing Systems (PGS) is one of Meat & Livestock Australia’s (MLA) flagship adoption programs which drives measurable, improved business performance outcomes for participating red meat producers. The MLA Adoption Strategy outlines an increased focus on long-term practice change programs, new awareness and learning channels, ensuring adoption is embedded within applied on-farm R&D and building the capacity of and attracting the supporting advisory network.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) are calling for interested and skilled partners to review and redevelop the MLA Cost of Production (COP) calculator.

Expressions of Interest are sought from suitably qualified organisations to support the design, fabrication and real world testing of an improved discharge platform for use in live cattle export supply chains.

The discharge of cattle from export vessels to trucks at destination ports relies on temporary or fixed discharge platforms.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and the Goat Industry Research, Development and Adoption Committee (GIRDAC) are calling for full applications from prospective service providers to design, develop and deliver a goat-specific transport education package targeted at key stakeholders across the transport supply chain (e.g. producers, transporters, agents, saleyard/depot operators, buyers, processors etc.).

The successful project will be funded via the goat levy or hybrid (goat levies and MLA Donor Company) funding streams. For projects to be funded, they must be recommended for funding by GIRDAC prior to progressing through the MLA governance process. Find more information on the goat levy funding system here.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking applications from suitably qualified individuals or organisations for the role of Technical Assessment Lead for the Livestock Sector Australian Carbon Credit Unit (ACCU) Method.

MLA has been invited by the Australian Government to lead the development of a new Livestock Sector ACCU Method covering beef, sheep and dairy production systems. The successful applicant will provide independent scientific, technical and regulatory assurance throughout method development, including review of method architecture, abatement calculations, modelling approaches, draft method documentation and the carbon estimation tool.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking Expressions of Interest from individuals (and organisations nominating an individual) to join the following Technical Advisory Panels supporting the Livestock Sector ACCU Method:

• Producer advisory panel (e.g. key regional producers, first nation producers and research councils)
• Beef technical advisory panel (feedlot & pasture-raised beef cattle)
• Sheep technical advisory panel
• Dairy advisory panel
• Low emission genetic trait advisory panel (across all species).

Meat & Livestock Australia is seeking applications from individuals to fill four Module Leader roles. These roles will contribute to the co-development of a new Livestock Sector ACCU Method. Each role is aligned to a specific module:

• Pasture-based beef cattle
• Feedlot beef cattle
• Sheep
• Monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV).

MLA is supporting industry fast track a transition from paper to digital consignments using electronic National Vendor Declarations (eNVD), and ultimately to paperless consignments. Via the MLA Donor Company (MDC) MLA is making available a co-funding opportunity to support value chain stakeholders such as processors, livestock agencies, saleyards, transporters, integrated companies and their supply chain, including software providers, shift towards digital NVDs.

eNVDs address the inefficiencies of paper-based NVDs including NVDs becoming lost, outdated, incomplete and illegible, resulting in challenges capturing the robust data required to underpin market access. eNVDs also provide receivers such as processors, transporters, agents and saleyards, with consignment information ahead of livestock arrival allowing easy information exchange, real-time corrections, removing manual and duplicative data entry requirements, enabling data to be used across multiple systems and reducing processing time by the receivers. 

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking suitably skilled individuals or organisations to submit a tender for the role of Coordinator for the Producer Demonstration Site (PDS) Program.

The PDS Program underpins MLA’s research, development and adoption (RD&A) activities by supporting groups of producers to demonstrate, adapt and validate the triple bottom line benefits of new management practices, research outputs and associated skills within commercial production systems.

Meat & Livestock Australia are seeking expressions of interest from individuals with extensive professional experience in prime lamb production in Australia, either seedstock or commercial, to represent the prime lamb industry on the National Livestock Genetics Consortium.

The National Livestock Genetics Consortium (NLGC) is a skills-based taskforce, established in 2016 by MLA. The NLGC acts in an advisory capacity and provides direction and support to increase collaboration, transparency, communication and investment in livestock genetics research, development and adoption (RD&A) for the benefit of Australian red meat producers. The primary aim of the NLGC is, through strategic research investments, to increase the rate of genetic progress for traits that drive value chain productivity and sustainability in the sheep and beef industries. 

Meat & Livestock Australia is seeking applications from individuals to fill four Module Leader roles. These roles will contribute to the co-development of a new Livestock Sector ACCU Method. Each role is aligned to a specific module:

• Pasture-based beef cattle
• Feedlot beef cattle
• Sheep
• Monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV).

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

Buffalo fly (Haematobia exigua) is now the leading cause of economic loss in the Australian beef industry, with estimated annual impacts exceeding $170 million through reduced productivity, treatment costs, labour, and associated market impacts. Despite decades of research and management effort, control remains inconsistent, increasingly ineffective, and heavily reliant on a narrowing set of chemical tools.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and the Goat Industry Research, Development and Adoption Committee (GIRDAC) are calling for full applications from prospective service providers to identify key pre-weaning and weaning interventions implemented on-farm across managed goat businesses.

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

The Australian red meat industry (encompassing cattle, sheep and goat) generated $77.1 billion in turnover and $14.3 billion in exports in 2023-2024, supporting over 460,000 jobs nationwide (Meat & Livestock Australia 2025).  The industry’s success is built on a well-integrated and effective biosecurity system. Understanding the evolving biosecurity challenges that the red meat industry faces, and the gaps and needs that must be addressed, is critical to informing strategic research, development, and adoption (RD&A) investment.

Bloat remains a significant and growing animal welfare and productivity issue for grassfed cattle producers in southern Australia, exacerbated by improved legume-rich pastures and the withdrawal of reliable intra-ruminal monensin capsules from the market. This Terms of Reference calls for proposals to explore short-, medium- and long-term alternatives for bloat prevention, detection, and management to improve animal wellbeing and reduce production losses.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking suitable service providers to generate a multimodal resource package for producers that are tailored to best practice sheep production in the Southern Rangelands.  

Woody thickening, native woody vegetation encroachment, and the spread of woody weeds are increasingly impacting northern Australian rangelands, affecting pasture productivity, livestock performance, biodiversity, and long-term landscape condition.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking experienced applicants to develop and undertake a project which seeks to improve understanding of woody vegetation dynamics and their impacts through integrated spatial analysis, ecological research and production system modelling. The project will also identify practical, cost-effective management strategies that balance productivity, biodiversity and landscape resilience. It will strengthen early detection and response capabilities for woody weeds and support adoption through targeted extension and demonstration activities.

Australia's red meat producers manage a significant proportion of the national land base and play an important role in maintaining environmental assets while delivering productive and profitable farming businesses. As interest in natural capital accounting, environmental markets and sustainability frameworks continues to grow, there is an increasing need for tools to help producers capture, understand and communicate environmental information.

Current approaches to environmental reporting and credentialling across agriculture are fragmented, with multiple tools and systems developed for different purposes. This can create duplication, inefficiencies and additional administrative burden for producers, while limiting consistency across the broader supply chain.

Australia's red meat industry is increasingly required to demonstrate verified environmental and sustainability credentials to customers and other supply chain participants. However, credentials are currently generated and held across multiple systems, making it difficult for producers to efficiently share their credentials with the market, and for customers to identify producers who hold credentials that align with their requirements.

To address this challenge, Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) is seeking proposals to undertake a structured requirements-gathering and due diligence process to assess the feasibility, scope and design of a producer-consented credentials register for the Australian red meat industry.

Buffel grass pastures are of significant importance to red meat production in both northern and central Australia. Studies have also shown that cattle perform well on buffel-based pastures. As a persistent groundcover, buffel can rapidly re establish after rain or fire, stabilise soils and reduce dust/erosion; these attributes are valued by producers and land management organisations when rehabilitating degraded rangelands. However, recent nomination of buffel grass as a potential Weed of National Significance (WONS) has raised significant concerns among the many producers reliant on buffel.

MLA is seeking applications from organisations or consortiums to conduct a project that defines the role buffel grass plays in reducing soil erosion, and increasing carbon sequestration, in Australian red meat production zones. This will complement an economic benefit assessment being undertaken in parallel.

Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) has opened Expressions of Interest for BulkUp, a new program designed to help red meat businesses improve production efficiency and whole‑farm profitability.

BulkUp combines MLA’s established adoption products such as EDGEnetwork courses, Profitable Grazing Systems and more, under a long term peer‑to‑peer learning and supported coaching model. It focuses on strengthening management and financial decision‑making, improving production efficiency by optimising feedbase utilisation.

The aim of this investment call is to fund investments that will develop improved grasses, legumes, plant-microbe symbioses and management packages for a range of pasture systems across southern Australian grazing systems. Activities to improve plant-microbe symbioses, seed collections and seed technology are also within scope for certain components of the investment call. 

Specifically, these projects are to be conducted in regions represented by the Southern Australia Livestock Research Council (SALRC), i.e. NSW, Victoria, Tasmania, SA, and the ACT. 

Activities are also encouraged to encompass southern WA for species that are relevant to both SALRC and Western Australia Livestock Research Council (WALRC) regions. 

This tender is a re-release of a previous investment call, with a modified MLA Donor Company investment ratio of 50/50 now allowed.