Inaction on traceability is unacceptable

By Mark Eisele, Wyoming Cattle Producer and NCBA President

The future of the U.S. cattle industry hinges on our ability to swiftly respond to disease outbreaks. Yet, some groups and individuals continue to fight the tools that could protect our livelihoods. The most recent rule to come under fire is USDA’s animal disease traceability regulation.

In the face of a potential FMD outbreak, every minute counts. The choice between outdated methods and advanced technology could mean the difference between a controlled situation and a nationwide catastrophe. Imagine the chaos of an FMD outbreak, with markets shuttered, and producers frantically searching for nearly illegible metal bright tags in the pouring rain. This is not a future we can afford. Some argue that these changes are unnecessary or burdensome, the reality is that clinging to outdated ideas, practices and technology puts our entire industry at risk.

USDA’s new rules call for the use of an electronic identification (EID) tag in breeding cattle, 18 months of age and older, being transported across state lines. This class of cattle has required an ID tag for more than a decade. USDA is simply changing the technology from a metal bright tag to an updated EID tag.

Innovation has always been the backbone of American agriculture. The use of EID tag technology is not just a step forward; it’s a necessity for an industry that must be prepared for anything in a time of porous borders and uncertain global politics. USDA’s rule will allow cattle to be tracked more quickly in the event of foot and mouth disease (FMD) or similar emergency, when time is critical. We all know that the metal clips in the ears of cattle are nearly impossible to read after a year or two. We also know that reading them, writing down the information from the tag and transferring it to a database is slow, cumbersome and subject to human error. These issues can be alleviated by simply running a wand over an EID tag, making traceability faster and less error prone.

There are still issues and concerns with USDA’s effort to upgrade technology. One of the issues that must be addressed is how data is gathered and stored. Producer privacy is paramount to this effort. NCBA has long advocated for tag data to be held by private, third-party companies, like CattleTrace, rather than USDA. A third-party holder of information helps protect producer privacy while also allowing the rapid traceback required in the event of a disease outbreak. Cost is the other factor that NCBA has worked to alleviate. To help lower the costs of USDA’s rule, NCBA was able to secure $15 million in funding for the purchase of EID tags, to ensure that cattle producers aren’t saddled with added compliance costs.

None of us in the agricultural community desire more government intrusion in our businesses or our lives. NCBA has stood on the front lines fighting, and might I say winning, many of those issues for decades. We have always stood for industry solutions to industry problems and worked to be proactive in creating those solutions. Those whose only answer is “no,” and those individuals and groups who would allow perfect to be the enemy of good, have created a vacuum that the government is more than happy to fill. It is past time for us, as cattle producers, to create an industry-led and industry-controlled solution to disease traceability. Our current system and the ability to rapidly respond to a real disease outbreak is insufficient to protect each of us and our livelihoods. Now is the time for the cattle industry to lead, not lag.