July 9, 2005

Private animal ID system in the US could be operational soon

An industry-backed database that could help officials quickly pinpoint suspect cattle during a mad cow disease outbreak could be operational by January 2006, three years ahead of a proposed government system, the largest US cattle group said on Thursday.

The Bush administration embraced an animal identification system as a critical part of controlling mad cow disease, but industry questions over privacy and technology have slowed work. The system is a year behind its initial timetable.

Last month's discovery of the second US case of the brain-wasting disease has renewed calls for the quick implementation of a trace-back system.

The National Cattlemen's Beef Association said the database would enable federal and state animal health officials to track down herdmates of an infected animal within 48 hours of an outbreak.

According to Allen Bright, the project coordinator, many domestic and international customers have requested such identification already.

The group said it could begin testing the database, involving a million livestock producers and tens of millions of animals, by October. Besides cattle, hogs and poultry would be included in the registry.

The cattle group opposes a government-backed system because of concerns producers would lose control of information about their animals and operations but has selected BearingPoint Inc. to develop the database, which was estimated to cost about US$100 million annually.