August 14, 2020

USDA APHIS purchases eight million RFID tags for cattle and bison producers

The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) awarded contracts for the purchase of up to eight million low-frequency radio frequency identification (RFID) ear tags to boost animal disease traceability in cattle and bison.

Through the contract, APHIS may purchase additional tags every year for up to five years.

Greg Ibach, undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs said the USDA will provide the RFID tags free to interested producers, offsetting costs for them as well as helping the USDA to respond rapidly to livestock disease threats.

The USDA believes supplying RFID tags to the cattle and bison sectors will allow them to quickly contain a possible spread of high economic impact diseases. Through the RFID tags, veterinarians at state and federal levels can accurately trace livestock exposed or infected with disease before it adversely affects the domestic livestock industry.

Animal health officials will be supplied with the RFID tags for distribution to replacement breeding cattle and bison for free to the producer. RFID low frequency official calfhood vaccination (OCV) button tags are available for brucellosis-vaccinated animals, and official "840" white button tags are available for non-vaccinated heifers.

The metal National Uniform Eartagging System tags provided for free by the USDA remains available. The RFID transition proposal will be available for review and public comment through October 5.

The RFID tags are supplied by Allflex, Datamars, and Y-Tex under the Buy American Act.

Between January to July 2020, APHIS distributed over 1.1 million RFID tags to 38 states. Producers have the option to purchase RFID tags for their livestock by contacting any of the companies that have been authorised to manufacture official identification RFID tags.

-      US Department of Agriculture