WASHINGTON, D.C. – American cattle producers have reservations about their government’s latest push to establish a national animal identification system, including concerns about cost and who will have access to the information gathered.
Those concerns are not unlike the ones raised several years ago when a national cattle ID system was being implemented in Canada.
“I still think there’s conflict over control and they haven’t expressed any ideas on cost,” said Mike John, president of the Denver-based National Cattlemen’s Beef Association.
“NCBA has never wavered on our commitment to have private industry own it, control it and do the data collection and then provide access in the case of disease surveillance needs.”
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Last week, U.S.agriculture secretary Mike Johanns unveiled what he described as an ambitious plan for implementing his country’s national animal ID system. The goal, he said, is to have full producer participation by 2009.
The plan sets benchmarks for measuring the progress of implementation. Some things are already in place, such as the development of premises registries in each state. More than 235,000 premises are registered.
Guidelines for the manufacturing and distribution of animal identification numbers have also been issued.
The American system will include a combination of private and government databases for storing information. The NCBA wants the databases under private control to help ensure the privacy of information and to keep costs in check.
The association also remains hopeful that the identification system will stay voluntary, although Johanns hinted last week that it could become mandatory if there is not enough producer participation.
Johanns said the national animal identification system will help the U.S. remain competitive in international markets. .
An animal identification system makes it possible to track livestock from birth through to slaughter. During a serious disease outbreak, the system is meant to help officials quickly identify where a diseased animal was born and to identify other potentially exposed animals.
“A long-term goal is to be able to identify all animals and premises that have had direct contact with the disease of concern within 48 hours of the discovery,” Johanns said.
The agriculture secretary said his government wants a system that does not unnecessarily burden producers and does not unduly increase the size of government.
The American effort should also be beneficial to Canada because of the shared border and movement of livestock across that border, said Brad Wildeman, Canadian Cattlemen’s Association vice-president.
“We’ve worked with them for many years now, showing them our systems and ensuring that the system that they establish is compatible with ours.”
Japan is increasingly interested in animal identification in countries supplying it with beef. If the U.S. uses its animal ID program to keep offshore markets, that should help Canada, said Wildeman, since it would help prevent a surplus of beef from accumulating in North America.
