Post by simplynaturalfarm on Nov 28, 2006 15:34:26 GMT -5
News
National ID Is Dead
USDA effectively and quietly knocked the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) in the head last Wednesday. It did so with the unheralded publication of the "NAIS User Guide," which replaces all former NAIS draft documents. This document, for the first time, emphasizes NAIS as a voluntary program rather than as a steppingstone to a mandatory one.
In fact, at the very beginning, the guide explains, "USDA is not requiring participation in the program. NAIS can help producers protect the health and marketability of their animals -- but the choice to participate is theirs."
Late last month at a community outreach event in Kansas City, Chuck Conner, USDA Deputy Secretary, and Bruce Knight, USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, paved the way for the agency's back-pedaling.
"Since we've had some confusion on this, we need to be as clear as we can be. This is 'voluntary' with a capital V. Not a currently voluntary, then maybe a mandatory system. This is a permanently voluntary system at the federal level," Conner said.
"We're making it crystal clear that NAIS is voluntary -- no ifs, ands or buts," explained Knight. "Farmers can choose to register their premises. They can choose to participate in individual animal or group identification. And they can opt to be part of tracking. Or not."
The guide goes on to explain, "Participation in NAIS is voluntary at the federal level. Under our current authorities, USDA could make the NAIS mandatory, but we are choosing not to do so -- again, participation in every component of NAIS is voluntary at the federal level. The NAIS does not need to be mandatory to be effective; we believe the goals of the system can be achieved with a voluntary program. As producers become increasingly aware of the benefits of the NAIS and the level of voluntary participation grows, there will only be less need to make the program mandatory."
Absent from the "NAIS User Guide" are the suggested timelines and benchmarks for achieving an effective level of producer participation. Instead, USDA emphasizes its belief that market demands will provide the necessary incentive for participation.
That's possible, though it hasn't been the case, thus far. It's hard to imagine, too, the need commerce will see for a system cohesive and coordinated enough to provide the industry-wide, 48-hour trace-back NAIS was designed to provide. Consequently, the only real incentive for animal ID remains to be the value individual producers see in it for management purposes.
So, it seems NAIS is over, at least for the tenure of the current administration.
You can find the complete "NAIS User Guide" at animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/naislibrary/documents/instructions_guidelines/NAIS-UserGuide.pdf.
This doesn't help those who live in states that are requiring NAIS (Wisconsin and so on), but it is interesting to note that Federally it will not be required.
National ID Is Dead
USDA effectively and quietly knocked the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) in the head last Wednesday. It did so with the unheralded publication of the "NAIS User Guide," which replaces all former NAIS draft documents. This document, for the first time, emphasizes NAIS as a voluntary program rather than as a steppingstone to a mandatory one.
In fact, at the very beginning, the guide explains, "USDA is not requiring participation in the program. NAIS can help producers protect the health and marketability of their animals -- but the choice to participate is theirs."
Late last month at a community outreach event in Kansas City, Chuck Conner, USDA Deputy Secretary, and Bruce Knight, USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs, paved the way for the agency's back-pedaling.
"Since we've had some confusion on this, we need to be as clear as we can be. This is 'voluntary' with a capital V. Not a currently voluntary, then maybe a mandatory system. This is a permanently voluntary system at the federal level," Conner said.
"We're making it crystal clear that NAIS is voluntary -- no ifs, ands or buts," explained Knight. "Farmers can choose to register their premises. They can choose to participate in individual animal or group identification. And they can opt to be part of tracking. Or not."
The guide goes on to explain, "Participation in NAIS is voluntary at the federal level. Under our current authorities, USDA could make the NAIS mandatory, but we are choosing not to do so -- again, participation in every component of NAIS is voluntary at the federal level. The NAIS does not need to be mandatory to be effective; we believe the goals of the system can be achieved with a voluntary program. As producers become increasingly aware of the benefits of the NAIS and the level of voluntary participation grows, there will only be less need to make the program mandatory."
Absent from the "NAIS User Guide" are the suggested timelines and benchmarks for achieving an effective level of producer participation. Instead, USDA emphasizes its belief that market demands will provide the necessary incentive for participation.
That's possible, though it hasn't been the case, thus far. It's hard to imagine, too, the need commerce will see for a system cohesive and coordinated enough to provide the industry-wide, 48-hour trace-back NAIS was designed to provide. Consequently, the only real incentive for animal ID remains to be the value individual producers see in it for management purposes.
So, it seems NAIS is over, at least for the tenure of the current administration.
You can find the complete "NAIS User Guide" at animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/naislibrary/documents/instructions_guidelines/NAIS-UserGuide.pdf.
This doesn't help those who live in states that are requiring NAIS (Wisconsin and so on), but it is interesting to note that Federally it will not be required.