According to Downsize DC, the USDA is scraping the NAIS!!! I am so excited about this, I can't even tell you!
Details of why they decided to back down and what they plan on doing now is available here.
It's 7 pages and a lot of it is the same information repeated over and over again in response to different FAQs. Basically, here's the deal...
They're going to do another program, the Animal Disease Traceability Framework, but it is going to be very limited in its scope, while being very flexible in how people participate. The only animals to which the program will apply will be those involved in interstate commerce! Animals who remain within a single state will not need to be traced by the program. In addition, a uniform method identifying an animal is no longer required. In other words, no RFID tags for those who don't want them. Various methods of tagging will be recognized as valid, such as metal tags, branding, tattooing, etc.
The next thing they're going to do is meet with States and Tribal Nations to discuss what they'd like to see in the program and what the people they're representing want to see. Then this summer and fall, they're going to continue working to put together actual standards for tracing animals in interstate commerce with special attention to making it simple, efficient and easy for individuals with as little hassle as possible. They hope to have the new rules published by next winter and ready for a 90 public comment period at that time before final review and implementation. What all that means for interstate transportation of animals during the next year+, I can't say, but they aren't using NAIS any more.
I like the tone of this new program, at the very least, and their claim of transparency, straightforward honesty, and sensitivity toward the concerns of common citizens who own livestock animals. The USDA seems to have taken the criticism of the NAIS seriously. We'll see if they continue to follow through with that.
Showing posts with label NAIS and USDA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label NAIS and USDA. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Because I needed another reason to hate Smithfield Foods...
So now they're probably in some part responsible for the swine flu pandemic. Nice one, guys.
I actively boycott Smithfield Foods products and all subsidiaries (and Paula Deen too... She's their celebrity spokesperson)... not that I ever bought all that much pork in any of its various forms, but now I'm quite conscientious about it.
For those who are unaware of Smithfield's dubious reputation,, check out this Rolling Stone article (be aware, there are graphic images) about the atrocious way they operate their facilities inside the US where there's supposed to be regulations to stop this flagrant corporate irresponsibility. God only knows what they do in other countries where health, safety and environmental laws (not to mention, laws for the humane treatment of animals) are not even up to our standards (which are obviously too low if Smithfield gets away with these things).
Smithfield refutes many of the claims made in this article (interestingly not my favorite part with the quotes from the guy who started the company about just how much he laughs at the EPA investigators)... However, it is interesting to note that due to at least one of the health concerns detailed in the Rolling Stone article - water contamination - North Carolina had enacted a moratorium on hog "concentrated animal feeding operations" (CAFO's or "factory farms") in 1997, which was extended repeatedly until 2007 when it was allowed to expire... Not that the moratorium was particularly effective. South Carolina, Virginia and Quebec have also passed moratoriums limiting CAFOs and the methods employed at such facilities, and I know that Florida has laws detailing the amount of room a pregnant sow is supposed to be allotted (so they can't be kept in crates barely large enough for them to breath in, forget about moving, as they had been until the referendum was passed). I honestly don't know what's being done about curtailing dirty hog farming in those states right now, but I'd be willing to venture the answer is "not enough."
I actively boycott Smithfield Foods products and all subsidiaries (and Paula Deen too... She's their celebrity spokesperson)... not that I ever bought all that much pork in any of its various forms, but now I'm quite conscientious about it.
For those who are unaware of Smithfield's dubious reputation,, check out this Rolling Stone article (be aware, there are graphic images) about the atrocious way they operate their facilities inside the US where there's supposed to be regulations to stop this flagrant corporate irresponsibility. God only knows what they do in other countries where health, safety and environmental laws (not to mention, laws for the humane treatment of animals) are not even up to our standards (which are obviously too low if Smithfield gets away with these things).
Smithfield refutes many of the claims made in this article (interestingly not my favorite part with the quotes from the guy who started the company about just how much he laughs at the EPA investigators)... However, it is interesting to note that due to at least one of the health concerns detailed in the Rolling Stone article - water contamination - North Carolina had enacted a moratorium on hog "concentrated animal feeding operations" (CAFO's or "factory farms") in 1997, which was extended repeatedly until 2007 when it was allowed to expire... Not that the moratorium was particularly effective. South Carolina, Virginia and Quebec have also passed moratoriums limiting CAFOs and the methods employed at such facilities, and I know that Florida has laws detailing the amount of room a pregnant sow is supposed to be allotted (so they can't be kept in crates barely large enough for them to breath in, forget about moving, as they had been until the referendum was passed). I honestly don't know what's being done about curtailing dirty hog farming in those states right now, but I'd be willing to venture the answer is "not enough."
Friday, November 21, 2008
Go make yourself heard...
Because he's awesome, President-Elect Obama has set up a website where we can all send his people our ideas about what needs to be done in this country.
Change.gov
Check it out!
Some talking points I thought important to bring up:
Change.gov
Check it out!
Some talking points I thought important to bring up:
- Energy independence, but in a green way. No more mountain-top removal coal mining. No more lies about "clean" coal. No new nuclear power plants. Wind, solar, hydroelectric, tidal, geothermal - FTW!
- Agriculture - NO NAIS! Support for family farms, organic farms, local agriculture projects, education, etc. Down with factory farming!
- Reducing the amount of energy Americans currently consume. More efficient cars. More solar panels on residential, public and business buildings. Clotheslines available for everyone to use, YAY!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Press Release
Got this press release this morning from the Liberty Ark Coalition:
Legal Defense Fund Moves to Stop Animal ID Program;
Files Intent to Sue Letter with USDA and Michigan Department of Agriculture
Falls Church, Virginia, (May 15, 2008) -- Attorneys for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund today sent a Notice of Intent to Sue letter to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) over implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), a plan to electronically track every livestock animal in the country.
The Notice asks the USDA and MDA to "immediately suspend the funding and implementation of NAIS," and "fully and fairly examine" whether there is even a need for such a program.
Taaron Meikle, Fund president, said that contrary to USDA's claim, NAIS will do nothing to protect the health of livestock and poultry. "At a time when food safety and costs are a concern, the USDA has spent over $118 million to promote a program that will burden everyone from pleasure horse owners to ranchers and small farmers to individuals who raise a few chickens or steers on their own land for their own use."
Once fully implemented, the NAIS program would require every person who owns even one livestock or poultry animal (a single chicken or a pet pony) to register their property with the state and federal government, to tag each animal, and to report "events" to a database within 24 hours. Reportable events would include such things as a private sale, a state fair, or a horse show.
The Notice charges that USDA has never published rules regarding NAIS, in violation of the Federal Administrative Procedures Act; has never performed an Environmental Impact Statement or an Environmental Assessment as required by the National Environmental Policy Act; is in violation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act that requires them to analyze proposed rules for their impact on small entities and local governments; and violates religious freedoms guaranteed by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
"We also think there are constitutional issues at stake here," Meikle noted. "The requirement to use electronic ear tags or RFID chips violates the religious beliefs of some farmers, such as the Amish, and provisions in a memorandum of understanding between the USDA and the MDA could violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution by requiring the state to stop and inspect vehicles carrying livestock without a warrant or probable cause."
The MDA has implemented the first two stages of NAIS -property registration and animal identification - for all cattle and farmers across the state as part of its mandatory bovine tuberculosis disease control program, which is mandated by a grant from the USDA.
"While touted as a disease control program, the NAIS will drive many small farmers out of business" Meikle noted, "and burden every person who owns even one horse, chicken, cow, goat, sheep, pig, llama, alpaca, or other livestock animal with expensive and intrusive government regulations."
Joe Golimbieski, a farmer from Standish, Michigan and Fund member, explains: "The cost of the tags is just the start. We're at the mercy of whatever price the stockyards charge to do the tagging. And our farm doesn't have extra employees to deal with paperwork. NAIS is likely to put us out of business."
Gary Cox, General Counsel for the Fund, states that "USDA and MDA have exceeded their authority and they have completely failed to follow the proper procedures. We are calling on the agencies to immediately halt implementation of the program or face appropriate action."
About The Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund: The Fund's mission is to defend the freedoms and to broaden the rights of sustainable farmers and their consumers to produce and consume local, nutrient-dense foods. Concerned citizens can support the Fund by joining at www.farmtoconsumer.org or by contacting the Fund at 703-208-FARM. The Fund's sister organization, the Farm-to-Consumer Foundation (www.farmtoconsumerfoundation.org), works to support farmers engaged in sustainable farm stewardship and promote consumer access to local, nutrient-dense food.
Editor's Note: The Notice of Intent to Sue the (USDA) and (MDA) is available at www.farmtoconsumer.org
###
Contacts:
Taaron G. Meikle
President, Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and Farm-to-Consumer Foundation
703-537-8372
tgmeikle@aol.com
Brian Cummings
Cummings & Company LLC
214-295-7463
brian@cummingspr.com
Legal Defense Fund Moves to Stop Animal ID Program;
Files Intent to Sue Letter with USDA and Michigan Department of Agriculture
Falls Church, Virginia, (May 15, 2008) -- Attorneys for the Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund today sent a Notice of Intent to Sue letter to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Michigan Department of Agriculture (MDA) over implementation of the National Animal Identification System (NAIS), a plan to electronically track every livestock animal in the country.
The Notice asks the USDA and MDA to "immediately suspend the funding and implementation of NAIS," and "fully and fairly examine" whether there is even a need for such a program.
Taaron Meikle, Fund president, said that contrary to USDA's claim, NAIS will do nothing to protect the health of livestock and poultry. "At a time when food safety and costs are a concern, the USDA has spent over $118 million to promote a program that will burden everyone from pleasure horse owners to ranchers and small farmers to individuals who raise a few chickens or steers on their own land for their own use."
Once fully implemented, the NAIS program would require every person who owns even one livestock or poultry animal (a single chicken or a pet pony) to register their property with the state and federal government, to tag each animal, and to report "events" to a database within 24 hours. Reportable events would include such things as a private sale, a state fair, or a horse show.
The Notice charges that USDA has never published rules regarding NAIS, in violation of the Federal Administrative Procedures Act; has never performed an Environmental Impact Statement or an Environmental Assessment as required by the National Environmental Policy Act; is in violation of the Regulatory Flexibility Act that requires them to analyze proposed rules for their impact on small entities and local governments; and violates religious freedoms guaranteed by the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
"We also think there are constitutional issues at stake here," Meikle noted. "The requirement to use electronic ear tags or RFID chips violates the religious beliefs of some farmers, such as the Amish, and provisions in a memorandum of understanding between the USDA and the MDA could violate the Fourth and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution by requiring the state to stop and inspect vehicles carrying livestock without a warrant or probable cause."
The MDA has implemented the first two stages of NAIS -property registration and animal identification - for all cattle and farmers across the state as part of its mandatory bovine tuberculosis disease control program, which is mandated by a grant from the USDA.
"While touted as a disease control program, the NAIS will drive many small farmers out of business" Meikle noted, "and burden every person who owns even one horse, chicken, cow, goat, sheep, pig, llama, alpaca, or other livestock animal with expensive and intrusive government regulations."
Joe Golimbieski, a farmer from Standish, Michigan and Fund member, explains: "The cost of the tags is just the start. We're at the mercy of whatever price the stockyards charge to do the tagging. And our farm doesn't have extra employees to deal with paperwork. NAIS is likely to put us out of business."
Gary Cox, General Counsel for the Fund, states that "USDA and MDA have exceeded their authority and they have completely failed to follow the proper procedures. We are calling on the agencies to immediately halt implementation of the program or face appropriate action."
About The Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund: The Fund's mission is to defend the freedoms and to broaden the rights of sustainable farmers and their consumers to produce and consume local, nutrient-dense foods. Concerned citizens can support the Fund by joining at www.farmtoconsumer.org or by contacting the Fund at 703-208-FARM. The Fund's sister organization, the Farm-to-Consumer Foundation (www.farmtoconsumerfoundation.org), works to support farmers engaged in sustainable farm stewardship and promote consumer access to local, nutrient-dense food.
Editor's Note: The Notice of Intent to Sue the (USDA) and (MDA) is available at www.farmtoconsumer.org
###
Contacts:
Taaron G. Meikle
President, Farm-to-Consumer Legal Defense Fund and Farm-to-Consumer Foundation
703-537-8372
tgmeikle@aol.com
Brian Cummings
Cummings & Company LLC
214-295-7463
brian@cummingspr.com
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
The USDA & livestock registration
Got this in an e-mail today and found it very disturbing... but oddly not surprising given the state of government at the moment. Sign the petition if you're as outraged as I am... Is livestock a threat to national security now or something? If someone understands this or has more info on it, please leave me a comment or two.
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/369063795?ltl=1136227578
"Small farmers and backyard flock/herd keepers are facing a serious threat to their way of life. The government is proposing a Mandatory Property and Animal Surveillance Program that will require the registration of property and individual animals, even if you have only one chicken, pig, cow, etc. This must be stopped, or all small farmers will be driven out of business.
Help Stop the USDA from Taking Away Our Livestock and Our Pets
Poultry keepers and small farmers are facing a serious threat from a proposed government intrusion in to their pastimes and way of life. For quite a while now, the USDA has been working with the very largest scale animal industry organizations ( for example, The National Pork Producers, Monsanto Company, and Cargill Meat) to develop a mandatory "National Animal Identification System" (NAIS). Most small scale livestock producers, people who raise animals for their own food, and people who keep horses and livestock as companion animals do not know about this. The NAIS will drive small producers out of the market, will force people to stop raising animals for their own food, and will invade our privacy to an extreme degree. It will violate the religious freedoms of Americans whose beliefs make it impossible for them to comply, and will destroy the last vestiges of animal welfare from the production of animals for food.
On April 25, 2005,the USDA released "Draft Program Standards" and a "Draft Strategic Plan" concerning the NAIS. If you think the description below to bizarre to be true, please go to usda.gov/nais and read the Standards and Plan and check the citations for yourself.
By January 1, 2008, the NAIS will be mandatory.(Plan,pp. 2,10,17) Every person who owns even one horse, cow ,pig, chicken, sheep, pigeon, or virtually any livestock animal, will be forced to register their home, including the owners name, address and phone number, and keyed to Global Positioning System coordinates for satellite monitoring in a giant federal database under a 7-digit "premises id number." St., pp. 3-4, 10-12; Plan,p.5) Every animal will be assigned a 15 digit I.D. number, also to be kept in a federal database. The id will likely be a tag or microchip containing a Radio Frequency Device, designed to be read from a distance. (Plan, p.10; St.,pp.6,12,20,27-28.) The plan may include collecting the DNA of every animal and /or a retinal scan. The owner will be required to report the birthdate of every animal, the application of every animal's id tag, every time an animal enters or leaves the property, every time an animal loses a tag, every time a tag is replaced, the slaughter or death of an animal, if any animal is missing. These events must be reported within 24 hours.
Third parties, like veterinarians, will be required to report "sightings" of animals. For example, if you have a vet on your property to treat a sick animal, and the vet sees any animal without the mandatory 15-digit computer readable id, the vet will be required to report you. If you do not comply, the USDA will exorcise "enforcement" against you. The USDA hasn't specified the nature of "enforcement" as of yet, but it will probably include fines and/or seizing your animals. There are no exceptions - under this plan you will be forced to register an report even if you raise animals only for your own food or keep horses for draft or transportation.
What you can do: Small scale keepers of poultry and other livestock can take action to create an effective movement in opposition to the USDA plan. First, small scale livestock owners should not participate in any "voluntary" state or federal program to register farms or animals. The USDA is making farmers willingness to participate in a "voluntary" program as a justification for making the program mandatory. ( See Plan, "Executive Summary" and pp.7-8) Small farmers and livestock owners can also help to inform and organize others. The USDA presently does not plan to finalize it's rules for mandatory id until the summer of 2006. There is still time to make your voice heard. Please, sign this petition and let the USDA know we will not stand for having our right, freedoms, and personal privacy taken away. Thank you."
http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/369063795?ltl=1136227578
"Small farmers and backyard flock/herd keepers are facing a serious threat to their way of life. The government is proposing a Mandatory Property and Animal Surveillance Program that will require the registration of property and individual animals, even if you have only one chicken, pig, cow, etc. This must be stopped, or all small farmers will be driven out of business.
Help Stop the USDA from Taking Away Our Livestock and Our Pets
Poultry keepers and small farmers are facing a serious threat from a proposed government intrusion in to their pastimes and way of life. For quite a while now, the USDA has been working with the very largest scale animal industry organizations ( for example, The National Pork Producers, Monsanto Company, and Cargill Meat) to develop a mandatory "National Animal Identification System" (NAIS). Most small scale livestock producers, people who raise animals for their own food, and people who keep horses and livestock as companion animals do not know about this. The NAIS will drive small producers out of the market, will force people to stop raising animals for their own food, and will invade our privacy to an extreme degree. It will violate the religious freedoms of Americans whose beliefs make it impossible for them to comply, and will destroy the last vestiges of animal welfare from the production of animals for food.
On April 25, 2005,the USDA released "Draft Program Standards" and a "Draft Strategic Plan" concerning the NAIS. If you think the description below to bizarre to be true, please go to usda.gov/nais and read the Standards and Plan and check the citations for yourself.
By January 1, 2008, the NAIS will be mandatory.(Plan,pp. 2,10,17) Every person who owns even one horse, cow ,pig, chicken, sheep, pigeon, or virtually any livestock animal, will be forced to register their home, including the owners name, address and phone number, and keyed to Global Positioning System coordinates for satellite monitoring in a giant federal database under a 7-digit "premises id number." St., pp. 3-4, 10-12; Plan,p.5) Every animal will be assigned a 15 digit I.D. number, also to be kept in a federal database. The id will likely be a tag or microchip containing a Radio Frequency Device, designed to be read from a distance. (Plan, p.10; St.,pp.6,12,20,27-28.) The plan may include collecting the DNA of every animal and /or a retinal scan. The owner will be required to report the birthdate of every animal, the application of every animal's id tag, every time an animal enters or leaves the property, every time an animal loses a tag, every time a tag is replaced, the slaughter or death of an animal, if any animal is missing. These events must be reported within 24 hours.
Third parties, like veterinarians, will be required to report "sightings" of animals. For example, if you have a vet on your property to treat a sick animal, and the vet sees any animal without the mandatory 15-digit computer readable id, the vet will be required to report you. If you do not comply, the USDA will exorcise "enforcement" against you. The USDA hasn't specified the nature of "enforcement" as of yet, but it will probably include fines and/or seizing your animals. There are no exceptions - under this plan you will be forced to register an report even if you raise animals only for your own food or keep horses for draft or transportation.
What you can do: Small scale keepers of poultry and other livestock can take action to create an effective movement in opposition to the USDA plan. First, small scale livestock owners should not participate in any "voluntary" state or federal program to register farms or animals. The USDA is making farmers willingness to participate in a "voluntary" program as a justification for making the program mandatory. ( See Plan, "Executive Summary" and pp.7-8) Small farmers and livestock owners can also help to inform and organize others. The USDA presently does not plan to finalize it's rules for mandatory id until the summer of 2006. There is still time to make your voice heard. Please, sign this petition and let the USDA know we will not stand for having our right, freedoms, and personal privacy taken away. Thank you."
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