August 17, 2009

 

 

Those opposed to a national animal identification system are making the issue too complicated, said a US Department of Agriculture official Friday (August 14).

 

Neil Hammerschmidt, USDA's National Animal Identification System coordinator, spoke to a gathering of cattle producers here and defended the need for traceability in the cattle industry to stem a variety of diseases more easily. He also acknowledged widespread opposition to a full-blown trace-back plan with electronic ear tags and readers that would allow almost instantaneous traces.

 

In an interview, Gregg Doud, agricultural economist for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association, expressed concerns that cost to cattle producers and livestock auctions couldn't be recovered readily. For some, the costs could be too high to participate.

 

Hammerschmidt said a national system could begin with numbered metal ear tags applied at the original farm or ranch, much like the tags used in the successful campaign to wipe out brucellosis. These tags are cheap and would give veterinary investigators a place to start trace-forward searches of diseased livestock while they also did trace-back investigations of cattle movements.

 

That kind of "bookend" approach to livestock identification was where Canada started with its program, he said. Government officials there now are working toward an electronic system that provides movement information as well, but it's a step-by-step process.

 

Hammerschmidt acknowledged that a variety of trace-back systems are in place already as producers take advantage of premiums available to them through export or domestic marketing programs. He said, however, that a single numbering system would make life much simpler for veterinary officials, and the numbered tags still could fit with any marketing programme.

 

Traceability will be required by foreign countries for continued market access, Hammerschmidt said. Many countries have their own systems in place already, not only for disease tracing but to document that none exists, which may be one of the more important aspects of a nationwide ID system, he said.

 

In USDA listening sessions around the country, officials found that producers supported disease-control programs and traceability. But they differed on how to go about tracing back diseased animals. Disease prevention also must be the first priority, Hammerschmidt said.

 

Questions after his presentation also revealed fears of confidentiality about producers' operations and liability fears in the event of illness. Hammerschmidt said the information is protected from the Freedom Of Information Act, and he thought there shouldn't be a liability issue if producers are practicing good management procedures.

 

In the end, however, the solution must be "practical and affordable," Hammerschmidt said.