NAIS

Transcript of Tele-News Conference with Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns And Dr. John Clifford, USDA's Chief Veterinarian Regarding the National Animal Identification System Washington, D.C. - April 6, 2006

MODERATOR: Good afternoon from Washington. I'm Larry Quinn speaking to you from the Broadcast Center at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Welcome to today's news conference with Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns to discuss the National Animal Identification System plan. With the Secretary today is Dr. John Clifford, USDA's chief veterinarian with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. During our question period if you'd like to ask a question, please press *1 on your telephone touchpad. Now it's my pleasure to introduce to you Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns. SEC. JOHANNS: Well, thank you very much. And good afternoon everyone, and thank you for joining me today. We are going to do an update on the development of the National Animal Identification System. I am very pleased to make public today what we would refer to as our implementation plan and several other documents that will take us into the next phase of development. A National Animal ID system will dramatically improve our ability to respond to animal disease outbreaks. During the contagious disease outbreak, time is actually the enemy. The more time it takes to track an animal, the more animals are exposed, the more premises become involved, and the more money it costs to contain the disease. An animal ID system will help animal health officials identify the birthplace of a diseased animal and shorten the time required to trace the animal's history to identify other potentially exposed animals. A long-term goal is to be able to identify all animals and premises that have had direct contact with the disease of concern within 48 hours of discovery. As many are aware, this system will also help the U.S. livestock industry to remain competitive. Traceability is being used as a marketing tool by several countries. For example, Australia is aggressively marketing animal traceability to gain a competitive advantage over us. We know how important the export market is to livestock producers, and we want to retain our competitiveness in the international arena....


NAIS Implementation Plan

Integration Plan for Private and State Databases

Implementation of the Animal Identification Number (AIN)


USDA Outlines Plan, Benchmarks for National Animal ID Implementation

A new proposal from USDA outlines timelines and benchmarks for the establishment of the National Animal Identification System, along with a plan for the initial integration of private and state animal tracking databases with NAIS. Over the next two and a half years USDA wants 100% of premises registered and new animals identified and 60% of animals less than a year old to have complete movement data. The full plan, available at the NAIS Web site, gives an overview of what is currently in place and final components of the program expected to be operational in early 2007. By early 2007, USDA expects to have the technology in place, called the Animal Trace Processing System or commonly known as the metadata system, that will allow state and federal animal health officials to query the NAIS and private databases during a disease investigation. The animal tracking databases will record and store animal movement tracking information for livestock that state and federal animal health officials will query for animals of interest in a disease investigation. Currently only 235,000 premises are registered, or about 10% of the estimated national total. Secretary of Agriculture Mike Johanns says some may question that the system isn't working with 90% not participating. However, he explains that 10% are on-board with what essentially was a "national animal ID thinking paper." The plan outlines the following benchmarks for progress:
* January 2007: 25% of premises registered
* January 2008: 70% of premises registered; 40% of animals identified
* January 2009: 100% of premises registered; 100% of "new" animals identified;60% of animal <1 year of age have complete movement data...

Animal ID System to Be in Place by 2009

Authorities trying to limit disease outbreaks will be able to trace livestock movements from birth to slaughter by 2009, Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns said Thursday. The goal is to pinpoint a single animal's movements among the nation's 9 billion cows, pigs and chickens within 48 hours after a disease is discovered. Many livestock producers have been wary of a tracking system, which the government promised to create after the nation's first case of mad cow disease two years ago in Washington state. The department has shifted gears on other parts of the animal identification system. Johanns said last May it would be government-run. Now, Johanns is letting industry groups create their own tracking systems, so long as state and federal authorities are able to tap into the systems when needed. The goal is for all ranches, feed lots, sale barns, packing plants and other facilities to be registered, and all recently born animals assigned numbers by 2009, said the department's chief veterinarian, John Clifford. Clifford said about 10 percent of the nation's 2 million premises have registered so far. Still in question is whether or when it will become mandatory for U.S. producers to register and report the movements of cattle, hogs and poultry. Johanns has said the system probably will have to be mandatory....

Animal ID System, Cattle Feed Rules Long Overdue, but Stalled by Industry Influence, Says CSPI

Despite the discovery of three cows infected with bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or mad cow disease, long overdue measures to ensure the safety of the food supply and to keep foreign markets open to American beef have been stalled, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI). In a report coauthored with OMB Watch and Consumer Federation of America, CSPI says special-interest lobbying at federal agencies and at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) helped keep reforms, such as a nationwide animal identification system and a strong regulation governing cattle feed, from being finalized. The report identifies 10 closed-door meetings that staff at OMB, which is part of the Executive Office of the President, have held with the meat and feed industry, and points out that the senior levels of the Bush Administration’s Department of Agriculture are filled with former industry insiders. The groups are calling on Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns to jump start the stalled animal identification system and the Food and Drug Administration to finalize a rule preventing animal feed from being contaminated with mammalian blood, so-called “chicken litter,” and other animal-containing products that could pass on the prions that cause BSE. “We don’t need another mad cow to tell us how weak the United States’ cattle tracking system is,” said CSPI food safety director Caroline Smith DeWaal. “While Canada can quickly track all cattle that may have eaten infected feed, USDA has refused to mandate a similar system in the U.S.”....

Wyoming: Age and Source Verification Program Kicks Off

With markets for American beef proving restless in the Pacific Rim and around the world, the Wyoming Business Council is rolling out a voluntary program designed to help producers satisfy export requirements for Wyoming meat. John Henn of the Wyoming Business Council begins his Wyoming Verified Program for source and age verification of Wyoming livestock this month. As an approved partner in AgInfoLink's USDA PVP program, Henn will audit ranch records to verify age of animals and their place of birth. The program is in place due to restrictions placed on American beef after Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) was found in a Canadian animal on a Washington State ranch in 2003. Even though U.S. food safety measures ensure any material that could potentially carry the BSE agent does not enter the food chain, Japan closed its borders to American beef, depriving producers in the states a market that had brought $1.4 billion annually to the U.S. beef industry. The impact of this program will benefit the producer financially, Henn said. The loss of the Japan market meant a loss that equated to about $150 a head on the finished animal. "We hope we can get that back over a period of time when that market re-opens," Henn added. Animals that are source and age verified have been getting a premium from buyers and packers here at home. Since BSE has not been found in any animals under the age of 30 months, several countries around the world are not accepting beef unless its age is certified by a third party and proves to be less than 21 months of age for Japan and 30 months for other countries....