Confidentiality was promised more than a year ago to Canadian cattle
producers leery about a national identification program for their
livestock.
Producers were assured the program could not be used by feedlots to
trace cattle back to the herd of origin.
But some people think feedlots should be able to do that because
sometimes the cattle they buy have not been adequately immunized or
castrated before leaving the farm.
Tom Baron, a cattle producer and feedlot operator from Carberry, Man.,
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is among those who support allowing feedlots and other cattle buyers to
trace cattle to their original herd.
“Why should people be scared to sell cattle unless it’s done
anonymously?” he asked, during the annual meeting of the Manitoba
Cattle Producers Association last week. “I really don’t understand the
mentality.”
Some feedlots have said producers should do a better job of vaccinating
their cattle against diseases such as bovine viral diarrhea.
However, Baron highlighted the problem of bull calves that are poorly
castrated at the farm level.
Sometimes one of the two testicles in the scrotum is left intact during
castration, resulting in what is called a belly nut. That belly nut
means the animal continues to behave like a bull, which can cause
problems when it is placed with other animals.
“The (feedlot) guys are … (angry) because they’re getting a bunch of
calves that are poorly castrated,” said Baron. “They’d sure like to
know who it was.”
But a motion to lobby the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency for the
kind of traceback sought by Baron was defeated during the MCPA meeting.
Some producers suggested producer confidence in the national ID program
would be shaken if the agency agreed to what Baron was seeking.
Bill Finney, a cattle producer and MCPA director from Eddystone, Man.,
said producers bought into the national ID program believing it would
help federal veterinarians trace diseases.
“To tell them you want to start making changes before the program is
implemented sends the wrong message.”
The program involves the identification of all cattle that move beyond
their herds of origin. The identification is done using ear tags
bearing numbers and a bar code unique to each animal.
As of July 1, there will be monetary penalties against producers who do
not comply with the program.
The system of traceback is expected to ensure the rapid containment and
elimination of potentially devastating reportable diseases and major
food safety defects.
