Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, United Stockgrowers of America, said that it was encouraged by the flexibility of the National Animal Identification System proposal that the U.S. Department of Agriculture published in the Federal Register last week. In particular, the rancher's group cited provisions that would prevent data from the program to fall into the hands of any private firm, and another provision that would make the program technology-neutral. That would mean that ranchers would be allowed to use traditional branding on their cattle, avoiding the high costs and potential pitfalls of more costly, higher-tech solutions such as radio frequency identification (RFID).
Bill Bullard, chief executive, said that the group was worried that costs would unduly burden small ranchers. "This is a national system and its costs cannot become a burden to farm and ranch families," he said.
The NAIS project is in public-comment phase through June 6, and critics are certain to focus on the cost of the system. USDA has set aside about $85 million for start-up costs, but after that, producers, processors and retailers will have to assume most of the costs.
Bill Bullard, chief executive, said that the group was worried that costs would unduly burden small ranchers. "This is a national system and its costs cannot become a burden to farm and ranch families," he said.
The NAIS project is in public-comment phase through June 6, and critics are certain to focus on the cost of the system. USDA has set aside about $85 million for start-up costs, but after that, producers, processors and retailers will have to assume most of the costs.
