USDA Electronic Ear Tag Rule Takes Effect Nov. 5 | Dairy News | lancasterfarming.com

A calf wears a circular radio frequency ID tag at a farm in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

The USDA electronic ear tag requirement for shipment of dairy cattle, some beef cattle and bison is set to take effect on Nov. 5.

The mandate aims to improve disease traceability by utilizing tags that can be read both visually and electronically with a scanner. The rule, which was finalized on April 26, applies to interstate movements for all intact cattle and bison 18 months of age or older, all dairy cattle, and show and rodeo cattle and bison of any age.

The rule does not apply to beef cattle under 18 months of age.

“Rapid traceability in a disease outbreak will not only limit how long farms are quarantined, keep more animals from getting sick, and help ranchers and farmers get back to selling their products more quickly — but will help keep our markets open,” said Dr. Michael Watson, a USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service administrator, in a news release.

Cattle tagged with metal or plastic non-radio frequency identification (RFID) tags prior to Nov. 5 will be grandfathered in and those tags will be considered acceptable for interstate movement for the life of that animal.

One cattle industry group, R-CALF USA, has expressed concern about the mandate and the effectiveness since tags don’t have to be scanned and tracked throughout the supply chain. R-CALF has also said the mandate will increase costs for cattle producers.

According to R-CALF CEO Bill Bullard, his organization has exhausted all available remedies with USDA and, with the help of the New Civil Liberties Alliance, will be filing a lawsuit against the mandate.

The lawsuit will be filed as soon as it’s cleared by New Civil Liberties Alliance, he said.

“The mandate imposes an additional production cost for those shipping adult cattle or dairy cattle across state lines with no means of recovering that cost,” Bullard said. “It also favors the largest producers as they will either pay a lower cost per tag or they can avoid having to tag altogether if the cattle are part of a vertically integrated system where they are managed as a group throughout their life, in which case they can travel with a group lot identification document.”

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association has said it supports containing costs to farmers.

“To avoid devastating financial losses during a potential outbreak and to help producers quickly return to commerce, we need an efficient animal disease traceability system,” said Mark Eisele, the group’s president.

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USDA is requiring electronic ear tags for shipment of dairy cattle, some beef cattle and bison.

USDA wants certain types of cattle to have ear tags that can be read both visually and electronically.

Staff Reporter

Tom Venesky is a staff reporter for Lancaster Farming. You canreach him at [email protected].

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