Delays at Australian Ag Agency Impacting Import Document Processing
Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment is experiencing delays processing various food-related import documents, including documents related to inspection bookings and the issuance of post-treatment releases, according to a Feb. 8 alert from C.H. Robinson. The agency said…
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it is seeing “unprecedented demand” for certain services and said “all efforts are being made to manage increased workloads.” To lessen the delays, Australia said it is diverting resources, returning certain staff to the office from remote work and fast-tracking the training of “Imported Food Assessment officers.” The agency also said it is prioritizing clients who have waited in the services queue the longest and urged clients to submit their documents “well in advance of arrival of the goods,” avoid submitting unnecessary documents and to make sure all their information is accurate. “There are a number of other medium/longer term initiatives underway, however we recognise these larger reforms will not address the immediate challenges we are experiencing,” Australia said.