No Mandatory Animal ID

USDA RELEASES BSE PREVALENCE ESTIMATE FOR U.S.

Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns today announced USDA's estimate of the prevalence of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in the United States.

"Our enhanced BSE surveillance program has been an enormous undertaking, but well worth the effort," said Johanns. "We can now say, based on science, that the prevalence of BSE in the United States is extraordinarily low. The testing and analysis reinforce our confidence in the health of the U.S. cattle herd, while our interlocking safeguards, including the removal of specified risk materials and the feed ban, protect animal and human health."

Four to seven animals is all they figure have BSE in the US. That's really good news. These statistical analysis always seem a little like witchcraft to me but i know most of the time they are valid.

The bigger question this brings up is, if the prevalence of BSE is so low in the US, why do we need the national Animal Identification System (NAIS) to track all animals? The original justification was the BSE crisis. If there is no BSE crisis, why track all the animals? I will tell you, to benefit the big corporations at the expense of the producers in this country. That's all NAIS is about. Animal health is not the driving force, it is the lie being used by the USDA/meat packers to drive this agenda.

An ear tag never stopped a disease, it's just used to feed bologna to the people of the US.

NFU opposes Animal ID program

The National Animal ID Program being proposed by USDA is being criticized by the National Farmers Union (NFU). President Tom Buis told Brownfield the government is headed down the wrong track. “They are headed for a disaster,” said Buis. He was particularly critical of the use of a public/private database system to track the movement of livestock.

Buis feels allowing private firms to profit from the creation and use of the database system is wrong. “I think they should go back to the drawing board and start over,” he suggested. The USDA has set a goal of having the system on line by 2007 and fully operational by 2009.

Liberty Ark Coalition Forms to Fight Animal ID

A broad-based coalition has been formed to oppose the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) as it is presently proposed. "We're calling the project The Liberty Ark Coalition," says Karin Bergener, an Ohio attorney who helped form the coalition. "We hope the Liberty Ark will save our animals, and our farms from unnecessary government intrusion."

The USDA sponsored program would require every premises which houses even a single chicken, duck, turkey, cow, pig, goat, horse, or any other animal considered to be livestock, to be registered in a government database, and assigned a seven-digit number and GPS coordinates. The premises owner may be required to pay a fee for the privilege.

The next phase would require every animal to be tagged with a radio frequency identification device or microchipped, also paid for by the owner. Finally, the movement of any animal from the registered premises would have to be reported within 24 hours. The program would be enforced, possibly with fines and even criminal penalties. The USDA has said that the program is currently voluntary, but if 100% of all farmers don't volunteer to participate, USDA will make it mandatory.

"The program is designed to track the source of a sick animal," says Meritt Lamb, a Tennessee magazine editor who also helped form the coalition. "But it will do nothing to prevent diseased animals from entering the food supply chain, nor will it address the problem of identifying imported meat products that enter the food supply chain." Lamb is typical of thousands of small land owners who keep a few chickens, an occasional steer or pig or goat for their own use, who will be severely impacted by the USDA program.

"This program will devastate county fairs, and 4H and Future Farmers of America projects, through which children learn how to care for, and show, their animals," says Randy Givens, a retired army colonel and coalition founder who resides in Texas. "It will kill the rodeo circuit. These programs have been successful for generations; the NAIS will wipe them out because it is simply not worth the effort, or cost, to register, tag, and report every animal that moves to a show or a county fair, or to a rodeo."

Judith McGeary, an attorney in Texas and founder of the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance (http://www.farmandranchfreedom.org/), says "We believe the Liberty Ark Coalition will bring together thousands of organizations and individuals from diverse backgrounds and beliefs who can make a difference. But it will take everyone, working together."

The Liberty Ark Coalition website is http://libertyark.net.

Animal-tracking system worries small farmers

A national animal-identification system, which the U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to fully implement by 2009, will financially burden small farmers, says Louisa County farmer Ramona Huff.

It is not only the cost of the identification tags, but also the record-keeping and the prospect of fines for not complying with the system's requirements that could put small farmers at a disadvantage, Huff said.

It worries more than small farmers, large ones are worried too. Between the cost and the record keeping requirements it is real scary to me. That's why we need to fight this by writing our elected officials and voicing our complaints. Keep jup the pressure.

An ear tag never stopped a disease bit it sure scare farmers and ranchers.

RFID vulnerable to attacks, researchers say

Researchers say they have proven that effective attacks can be launched against radio frequency identification tags.

In tests, standard "Generation 1" RFID tags and readers were unable to function after they were overloaded with data, researchers at Edith Cowan University in Perth, Australia, said in a report published this month.

"Vulnerabilities in the newer UHF style of RFID tags have been found and are of concern for anyone trying to implement an RFID system that would have 'mission critical' or human life issues involved in it," warned academics in the SCISSEC research group at the university.

Yet more trouble with the vaunted RFID tags that are supposed to solve all the perceived problems people see with the cattle industry. This is different than the virus I reported on earlier and yet another way the tags fail to meet expectations. How does the government expect this system to work so wonderfully with such problems being found with the tags?

Simple, they don't, they just want to get more fingers in our business, as if they don't have enough all ready, to control us for their benefits.

serf: a member of a servile feudal class bound to the soil and subject to the will of his lord

Yea, that's what they want, serfs. We need to oppose NAIS before we all servile to our Lord the government and do whatever they want.

An ear tag never stopped a disease but it sure exposes the flaws in the tags and our government.

USDA Outlines Plan, Benchmarks for National Animal ID Implementation

A new proposal from USDA outlines timelines and benchmarks for the establishment of the National Animal Identification System, along with a plan for the initial integration of private and state animal tracking databases with NAIS. Over the next two and a half years USDA wants 100% of premises registered and new animals identified and 60% of animals less than a year old to have complete movement data.

This may look like a story about the USDA's plan for NAIS. I don't think it is though. It is more of a threat to those of us opposing this that if the goals of the plan aren't met it will become mandatory.

Johanns says the benchmarks are important to determine "when or if we need to do a mandatory approach," he explains. "As we hit those benchmarks, we'll see how we're doing."

The secretary continued to stress the need for industry support for a national system. If only 50% is participating, it won't get the job done, he says.

If USDA finds the voluntary approach isn't working, Johanns explains it has the authority to change the system into a mandatory one without Congress writing new legislation.

What are the goals that have to met to make sure it's not mandatory? 100% participation in the plan. Hell, even if you make it mandatory you will not have 100% participation. Take something as simple as a drivers license, people drive without them all the time and take the chance of getting caught. NAIS will be the same way even if mandatory. So simply, this is Johanns threatening those of us opposing Mandatory NAIS. Is the threat going to work? I will still keep making noise against it so it won't stop me, how about you?

An ear tag never stopped a disease, but the government sure wants to convince us otherwise.

Congress To Include Livestock ID System In 07 Farm Bill

U.S. lawmakers intend to take on the responsibility of improving how the U.S. will operate a nation-wide livestock identification program - a tool to control outbreaks of animal diseases - when Congress writes the 2007 Farm Bill, even if that means delays, a key U.S. senator said Thursday.

Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., told reporters: "This is an issue we're going to deal with in the Farm Bill," and added it is more important to delay the process and "make sure we do it right."

It's more important than ever to get your voice raised and contact your Congressmen on NAIS issues. Too many of them are having their ears bent by the meat packing industry and they need to hear from producers that NAIS as conceived is not the right way. An option would be a metal tag herd ID system which would be less expensive, less intrusive, and easier for producers to manage. Let you voices be heard. Write, call, make noise now.

An ear tag never stopped a disease, but it is going to make it into the Farm Bill if we don't act now.

I think Mike John, President of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA), really needs to get a clue about what cattle producers want.

Livestock National ID Sign-ups S-l-u-g-g-i-s-h

The president of the National Cattlemen's Beef Association says in states where premises identification is not mandatory, enrollment has been painfully slow in establishing what will eventually become a national age, process and source verification system.

This, despite the fact many producers may already have the information needed for animal certification. "A very small percentage of producers have actually received a premises number," says 2006 NCBA President Mike John. "I don't know why that is. Every state has access to a Web-based premises allocation system. If people are worried about the government having access to that information, it already does."

If Premise Identification enrollment has been slow, maybe there is a reason for it. Like people think it's an unreasonable Government intrusion into their business. Of course in states where it's mandatory it's going well according to Mike John. Yea, you take a large stick and beat producers over the head and tell them they have to enroll in this "voluntary" program administered by the Meat Packers, through the US Animal Identification Organization, or they will be fined and wonder why enrollment is going well.

Mike John just doesn't get that he is a shill for the Meat Packers and is not working for the best interests of the Cattle Industry. I plan on being in the cattle business and I will wait until the USDA/NCBA/Meat Packers (they are all one outfit) forces me to get mine through law and do it under coercion. It's wrong and everybody knows it but whether we can turn this train or not is still in question.

An ear tag never stopped a disease, but it sure doesn't stop the government and their shills from pushing unwise policy down cattle producers throats.