TAGsA New Day for Animal Disease Traceability
I have absolute confidence that our cattlemen will get this done." Michael Coe, DVM, PhD of Global Animal Management, was referring to the industry's response to the new animal disease traceability framework. The frame-work will replace what was formerly known as the National Animal Identification System (NAIS).
Under the previous administration, the USDA tried to implement NAIS, fueling it with more than $120 million dollars and a vast outreach program. Struggling against ongoing opposition and a low acceptance rate — less than 36 percent of producers participated — NAIS has been shelved, deemed unworkable in its present form. While NAIS may be gone, the concept of a system or process to trace animals carrying disease is alive and well.
"The new framework provides a process for monitoring the movement of animals to prevent and control disease," Coe says. "Much about the new system is still being decided." It's important to note that the USDA is not working alone. It is conferring with state cattle associations, tribal nations, animal health representatives, industry groups, local farms and other stakeholders. This type of broad-based involvement will assure a more flexible, adaptable system than NAIS promised.
"There are three major highlights to the proposed framework," Coe explains. "The first is that the only animals the USDA is concerned with are those involved in interstate transportation. In other words, if a producer or family farm raises and sells animals within the state or uses the meat to feed themselves, they are not part of the scope of the USDA's framework."
Coe goes on to say that the second point is that the states and tribal nations are responsible for determining how to administer the system. The USDA provides the standards while the states will assume responsibility for managing the system. "The USDA isn't going to mandate how to comply with the framework. The states have the flexibility to come up with their own way of managing it," Coe says.
"The third point in the new animal disease traceability system is low-cost technology. NAIS was moving in the direction of electronic data capture. The new framework is starting with low-cost technology, which means metal clip tags," he says. "The goal is that every animal will receive a metal clip tag as it moves into interstate transportation. Those tags are about 10 cents apiece compared to $2 each for electronic ID tags."
The USDA announced the new framework on February 5, 2010. In the coming months, the Department will work in partnership with states, tribal nations and the industry to address many of the details of the new system. Whatever the final framework ends up looking like, Michael Coe is confident that cattle producers will rise to the occasion and make the system work. "I know that by giving flexibility to the states and by giving some ownership to producers, cattlemen will accomplish what we have to. Our industry will win."
