Managing Salmonella Enteritidis in commercial chicken flocks

Commercial chicken operators are required to have a plan for managing Salmonella Enteritidis (SE). This includes listing your business with MPI. To list, MPI needs your business details and a site map of your operation.

ECS guidance for all businesses [PDF, 1.2 MB]

Guidance for making a sitemap [PDF, 2.1 MB]

Commercial chicken operators must have a plan for managing Salmonella Enteritidis (SE). For each production system, you'll need to include in the plan information about:

• identification and traceability
• biosecurity controls
• vaccination
• actions for presumptive and confirmed SE detection
• cleaning and sanitation following a confirmed SE positive result, and return to trade testing.

Instructions and guidance for operators setting up their SE plan

Forms in these guidance documents may be filled out, saved, and submitted to your verifier as part of the verification process.

• Breeders guidance [PDF, 383 KB]
• Hatcheries guidance [PDF, 348 KB]
• Rearers guidance [PDF, 377 KB]
• Broilers guidance [PDF, 402 KB]
• Layers guidance [PDF, 372 KB]
• Primary processors guidance [PDF, 116 KB]

Find a verifier

Operators are required to have a verifier check their operation. 

You will need to contact a recognised verifier and receive a letter confirming they will do your verification.

Find a verifier on our register

Collecting samples

To comply with the ECS mandate, you will need to start sampling your farm. Record your findings on the relevant sample submission form.

Sample submission form: Hatcheries [PDF, 246 KB]

Sample submisison form: Farms [PDF, 237 KB]

Find a laboratory

Operators are required to have all samples taken as a part of their plans tested by an MPI-recognised laboratory.

1. Contact a recognised laboratory to schedule in your tests. 
2. Get confirmation from the laboratory that they can undertake the testing of your samples for SE as required.
3. Arrange with your laboratory to obtain sample submission forms and any sampling supplies needed – for example, swabs and courier address labels

Register of MPI-recognised laboratories

Operators using the RMP template for Harvesting, Candling, or Packing Eggs

For those operators using the the Risk Management Programme (RMP) Template for Harvesting, Candling or Packing Eggs, we have created a SE Management Clip-on document which covers the additional requirements you need to meet this ECS mandate. 

SE Management Clip-on – Additional requirements for RMP template for Harvesting, Candling, Packing Eggs [PDF, 425 KB]

Your parent company (for example, a company that controls the management of contracted farmers or growers and takes an active part in the farm's operations and compliance) may have already applied to list on your behalf. Check with them before you apply for listing with MPI.

Listing enables MPI to know:

• who is producing or processing chickens and eggs in New Zealand
• how to contact everyone in the event of any changes to the ECS order.

Listings will not be made public on this website.

For instructions on how to list with MPI, including which forms to include, what records to keep, and how soon listing is required, download the guidance and application form.  

You will have to pay for listing your business. The application fee is on the listing form. 

Once paid, send your application form and the required attachments to approvals@mpi.govt.nz 

Complete the listing form

MPI listing form (AP13) [DOCX, 105 KB]

AP13 Location spreadsheet [XLSX, 25 KB]

The verification process is to provide confidence that good food safety and biosecurity practices are followed. It also provides confidence to MPI and to our exporting partners (although you may not be exporting, overseas markets look at what we do at a national level to manage risks like SE).

This verification process also provides an independent review of your practices and what you could do to improve.

Information and guidance about verification and meeting requirements is in the guidance documents (available in step 2 – create and implement your plan).

The initial verification must be completed for:

• breeders and hatcheries within 3 months (before 6 January 2022)
• layers, broilers, and rearers within 4 months (before 6 February 2022).

Your verifier will:

• meet those responsible for the day-to-day management of the operation at the verification visit
• witness your sampling techniques. This may be a pretend or mock sample
• check how activities under the "show" headings of the guidance document are carried out
• provide a written report of their findings and will conclude your verification as either being "acceptable" or "unacceptable".

Should you have an unacceptable outcome, the verifier may decide that a follow-up visit is required. You must have an acceptable outcome to comply with the ECS order.

Keep all your verification paperwork together for 4 years.

If Salmonella Enteritidis is detected, your records will be important in reducing product loss and controlling any spread. You will want to be able to show that you have met the requirements of the ECS.

Notify MPI using the AP13 form if you need to:

• make a change to your listing information
• update the locations covered by your listing
• delist.

MPI listing form (AP 13) [DOCX, 105 KB]

If you are unsure how to proceed after a detection event, contact your verifier for advice.

In the event of a Salmonella enteritidis detection, you need to contact both your verifier and MPI by emailing food.compliance@mpi.govt.nz

If you become aware of a serious compliance situation, you should immediately call MPI on 0800 00 83 33.