National Milk Producers Federation

USDA Announces New Direction for Animal Disease Traceability - February 9, 2010

NMPF issued this statement in response to USDA's February 5, 2010 announcement that the agency would develop a new, flexible framework for animal disease traceability in the United States:

"NMPF continues to favor a mandatory animal identification system, national in scope, and one that allows 48-hour traceability across the food chain.

While the recent USDA announcement recognizes the political struggle of attempting to create a national system, NMPF is concerned about the potential incompatibility of 50 varying state systems, particularly if some don’t rely on currently available technology, such as RFID tags.

Moving forward, we will work with the USDA to ensure the dairy industry is at the animal ID forefront as a collective insurance policy in the event of an animal disease emergency."

USDA Adds Six Additional NAIS Listening Sessions to June Schedule - June 3, 2009

USDA announced that it added six additional National Animal Identification System (NAIS) listening sessions around the country in June. These were a follow-up to seven other listening sessions that were already held, several recent Congressional hearings, and USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack’s meeting with industry on animal ID. NMPF has taken a strong stance on the necessity of mandatory animal ID as a collective insurance policy for the industry in the event of an animal disease outbreak.

The six additional sessions will be held on the following dates:

• Tuesday, June 9: Truman Center - 1510 Jefferson Street, Jefferson, MO 65109
• Thursday, June 11: Holiday Inn Rapid City, Rushmore Plaza - 505 North Fifth Street, Rapid City, SD 57709
• Tuesday, June 16: Route 66 Casino & Conference Center - 14500 Central Avenue, SW, Albuquerque, NM 87121
• Thursday, June 18: TBA - Riverside, CA
• Thursday, June 25: Jane S. McKimmon Center - 1101 Gorman Street, Raleigh, NC 27606
• Saturday, June 27: Hamilton County Extension - 1143 NW US Hwy 41, Jasper, FL 32052

With these additional USDA listening sessions, the dairy industry needs to continue to send the consistent message to USDA about the need for mandatory animal ID. It is imperative that multiple dairy industry speakers attend each of these sessions in support of mandatory animal ID.

Please see NMPF's draft comments for additional help on how to support mandatory animal ID. NMPF's letter to Secretary Vilsack on the necessity of a mandatory National Animal Identification System may also be useful.

Again, if applicable, please identify producers from your organizations who can participate in these USDA listening sessions and inform Jamie Jonker (jjonker@nmpf.org).

Dairy Participation Needed at USDA Animal ID Listening Sessions - May 7, 2009

USDA will conduct seven National Animal Identification System (NAIS) listening sessions around the country in May and June. This is a follow-up to several recent Congressional hearings, and Secretary Vilsack’s meeting with industry on animal ID. NMPF has taken a strong stance on the necessity of mandatory animal ID as a collective insurance policy for the industry in the event of an animal disease outbreak.

The seven sessions will be held on the following dates:

NMPF Urges Consideration of Mandatory Animal ID in Testimony Before House Ag Subcommittee - March 11, 2009

On behalf of NMPF, Dr. Karen Jordan, D.V.M., testified before the U.S. House Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry on March 11, 2009, to focus on the need for mandatory animal identification for the livestock industries. Jordan, who was the owner of Large Animal Veterinary Services and the co-owner of Brush Creek Swiss Farms in Siler City, NC, appeared as the chairperson for the NMPF Animal Health & Welfare Committee. In her testimony, Jordan stressed how important animal ID was in maintaining animal health in every U.S. dairy herd. The complete testimony is available here.

View a video of Jordan's testimony on the IDairy website.

New IDairy Program Introduced

IDairy consists of six organizations that serve thousands of dairy farmers. These organizations, including NMPF, formed the coalition because we all agree that our industry will be best served when all dairy operations, and ultimately, all dairy cows, are identified in a national central database. To learn more, visit the IDairy website.