Reprint courtesy of Brenham Banner Press.

P.O. Box 585 Brenham, TX 77834-0585 (979) 836-7956
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Tuesday, August 29, 2006 3:45 PM CST

Farmers, ranchers oppose animal I.D. system proposal

A proposal to create a national identification system for animals has farmers and ranchers screaming "foul."

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's proposed National Animal Identification System (NAIS), which some agricultural producers are calling "a new threat to rural freedom," will be discussed at a meeting here Thursday.

The Brenham meeting is part of a series of regional meetings on NAIS being organized by the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance.

Thursday's meeting will begin at 7 p.m. It will be held in the Firemen's Training Center on the U.S. 290 Loop.

The Texas-based alliance says NAIS "poses a serious threat to all farmers, ranchers, livestock owners, and companion-animal owners, whether they are organic or conventional, small or large, involved with animals for business or for pleasure," according to its Web site.

"Across the country, every person with even one horse, cow, chicken, pig, goat, sheep, exotic animal or virtually any other livestock animal on their premises will be required to register their homes and property into a database and subject their property and animals to government surveillance," according to the organization.

Efforts against NAIS have sprung up across the country.

According to the alliance, each animal will have to be individually identified and physically tagged, in many cases with radio frequency tags or microchips.

"Every 'event' in the animal's life (including having the tag applied, any movements to and from the premises, and death) will have to be reported within 24 hours.

"All of this information will be kept in databases by the state government or private companies, while the federal government will have the right to access the databases as it deems necessary.

"The only exception from individual identification and tracking is that large industrial agricultural producers will be able to use just one group number for an entire confinement house of poultry or swine," according to the alliance.

"NAIS does not distinguish between large corporate factory farms and the smallest family producer, hobby farmer, or the grandmother with a few laying hens. Many families may be made criminals due to their religious convictions and concerns over privacy and property rights.

"Small and medium-size farmers and ranchers will be driven out of business, and the consolidation of our food supply into the hands of a few large, multinational corporations will continue."

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