| 8/28/2003 The Push Is On For National Animal ID System - 8/26 AgWeb In a letter to Senate Ag Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Hawks said the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has established a National Identification Development Team composed of a steering committee and five subcommittees totaling nearly 100 members and representing more than 70 industry stakeholder organizations. Hawks said the objective is to ensure that the U.S. develops an efficient and cost-effective animal identification system "that ultimately allows for traceability for disease purposes within a 48-hour time frame while not undermining the financial viability of animal agriculture." The ID team is reviewing ways to accelerate its efforts and development of the national system, Hawks said, He told Sen. Harkin that if the development process can be effectively accelerated and there is a need for additional authorities or resources, "we will provide this information to Congress as you have requested." The recent diagnosis of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) in Canada has heightened awareness of potential animal health risks facing livestock producers, the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said. On Monday, the group urged USDA to accelerate the implementation of an enhanced national animal identification system to ensure all preventive measures are taken and a rapid response would be mounted in the event of an occurrence of a foreign animal disease. Why NPPC says an enhanced system is needed. "It is critical that a uniform national premises and animal identification system evolves and moves forward rapidly to protect swine health and the financial viability of the U.S. pork industry," said NPPC President Jon Caspers. "The swine industry has had mandatory identification requirements since 1988. Not having a coordinated across-species mandatory identification system has the potential to devastate the U.S. swine herd and cause incalculable costs. An enhanced system is needed to maintain and strengthen the health and biosecurity of the U.S. livestock herd by providing timely and effective tracing in case of a disease event," Caspers added. NPPC's Caspers, a member of a national identification development team coordinated by USDA, said the system that is developed should be accurate, effective and affordable for pork producers. "We have met with Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman and informed her that we are ready to work closely with USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to further develop and refine the systems currently in place to enhance animal disease monitoring, surveillance and control and eradication in the US," he said. "Without an enhanced system in place, we remain vulnerable to disease and the threat of targeted bioterrorism aimed at harming US livestock and reducing confidence in our food supply." Caspers today will attend a Nebraska Governor's Summit on Agricultural Trade and Traceability to be held at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. At the meeting, Caspers said he will deliver the message to Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns and key U.S. government leaders about the importance of having a traceability system in place in the event of a foreign animal disease outbreak. State animal health officials, livestock industry groups and USDA officials are working to finalize a national animal identification plan. They want to have Phase One of the plan, dubbed Premises ID, in place by July 2004. This phase would require that standardized premises ID numbers be established for production operations, markets, assembly points, exhibitions and processing plants. Phase Two would begin once the Premises ID systems are in place. The second phase calls for individual ID for cattle in commerce. Other food animal and livestock species would require all animals that enter commerce to be identified via individual or group/lot identification. The goal is for Phase Two to be in place by the beginning of 2006. The goal is to develop a national standardized program with the capability to identify all premises and animals that had direct contact with a foreign animal disease within 48 hours of its discovery. For more details about the plan, check this link: http://www.agweb.com/images/content/idplan.pdf Related Link: http://www.agweb.com |
This
website is best viewed in Internet
Explorer or
Netscape Navigator versions
4.0 and
above. All content contained herein is subject to copyright law.
Click here to unsubscribe
above. All content contained herein is subject to copyright law.
Click here to unsubscribe