Arthur Cox advised Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in one of the largest investments in the agri-food industry infrastructure in recent years.

The corporate and commercial team at the firm’s Belfast office, led by partner William Curry, advised on the procurement process and contract terms for an £8.7 million award to a Belfast company.

The nine-year contract for the delivery of a new state-of-the-art food-animal health and traceability system for Northern Ireland was awarded to AMT-SYBEX, part of Capita PLC.

NIFAIS (the Northern Ireland Food Animal Information System) will be an improved replacement for the Animal and Public Health Information System (APHIS), which has been in operation since 1998.

William Curry, head of procurement law at Arthur Cox in Northern Ireland, said: “This was a hugely significant public sector IT contract, involving a tightly run competitive dialogue process.

“Arthur Cox advised on all aspects of the procurement from the outset, supporting the Department of Finance Central Procurement Directorate and DAERA through competitive dialogue with multiple bidders, to contract award and signature.

“We were delighted to be selected by DAERA to advise on this significant project, following a competitive tender process, and this highlights our depth of experience and expertise in this area.

“This contract was one of the first to use the Government Legal Service’s updated version of the Model Services Contract, which was published in 2014 to reflect developments in government policy. We tailored this contract to ensure that it met the key needs of DAERA and worked as a matter of Northern Ireland law.

“The importance of the NIFAIS system cannot be overestimated. The system is crucial for monitoring the health of our livestock and allows the agri-food sector to boost consumer confidence in local markets by tracing foodstuffs right back to source.”