April 2, 2007

Proposed Animal ID programme worries US livestock owners
 

Livestock and horse owners expressed concerned about the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) voluntary participation program on the National Animal Identification System (NAIS).

The NAIS is an information system that tracks livestock and producers. Under the program, livestock owners should register their premises, apply for a USDA-recognized identification number that is attached physically to each of their animals, and choose an animal-tracking database (ATD) for tracing individual animals or group/lot movements.

The fears of these wary livestock owners are the cost of fees, tags, equipment, time, and their property and animals being subject to constant federal and state government surveillance.

According to the USDA, the purpose of this program is to help protect livestock and poultry from disease spread, maintain consumer confidence in the food supply, and to retain access to domestic and foreign markets. Many farmers and ranchers disagree.