Page 72 - Winter2008

NAIS Update

THE GOVERNMENT’S DOUBLESPEAK
ON THE NATIONAL ANIMAL IDENTIFICATION SYSTEM
By Judith McGeary

The USDA’s implementation of the National state programs, data mining efforts and other
Animal Identification System, or NAIS, has non-voluntary methods of getting people into
taken government doublespeak to a new level. NAIS. Throughout this process, USDA officials
For newcomers, NAIS is an agribusiness-gov- have made statements along the lines of: “People
ernment plan to require every person who owns are overreacting. You shouldn’t rely on what
any livestock animal to submit to extensive the documents say, you should ask us what we
government regulation and surveillance. The meant.”
NAIS would cover anyone who owns even one In the course of the last two years, the
chicken, horse, cow, sheep, goat, pig, turkey, USDA’s mis-use of the word “voluntary” has
guinea, elk, deer, bison, or other livestock or been amply demonstrated. Wisconsin and
poultry. The first step is registration of one’s Indiana have openly mandated premises reg-
property with the state and federal governments. istration, while other states have used creative
The next phases of NAIS call for tagging each coercive tactics. Tennessee and North Carolina
Judith McGeary
is an attorney and animal with a 15-digit identification number, in state agriculture departments denied drought-
small farmer in most cases using electronic identification, and stricken farmers disaster relief if they were not
Austin, Texas, the reporting their movements to a database within registered in NAIS. Children were kicked out of
Executive Director 24 hours. Large factory farms would be able to the Colorado state fair for not being registered.
of the avoid most of the labor and expense by using Ranchers in Idaho found themselves registered
Farm and Ranch group identification. But the burdens for small in NAIS without their knowledge or consent after
Freedom Alliance, farmers, in both time and money, would drive filling out paperwork to keep their rights to their
and a local many grass-based farmers out of business, and brands, while horse owners in New York were
chapter leader
of WAPF. consumers would lose much of their access to similarly registered after taking their horses in
She has a BS in nutrient-dense animal foods. for routine disease testing.
biology from The USDA took another step along its
Stanford University HOW DO YOU DEFINE “VOLUNTARY?” twisted path this fall, issuing a memo to its Vet-
and a JD from the The USDA’s original plan for NAIS, released erinary Services Management Team that requires
University of Texas at in May 2005, called for the program to become NAIS premises registration for various disease
Austin. She and her mandatory after an initial voluntary period. In program activities. The memo includes activities
husband run a fact, the first two stages—premises registration such as vaccinations, testing, and applying of-
small grass-based
farm with Quarter and animal identification—were supposed to ficial ear tags, for programs for every livestock
Horses, cattle, become mandatory in January 2008, followed by species, ranging from brucellosis to scrapies to
sheep and heritage animal tracking in January 2009. When a public equine infectious anemia. Under this memo,
breeds of poultry. For outcry ensued, the USDA changed the timeline people who refuse to have their farms registered
more information and called for “100% voluntary participation,” an would be registered against their will. Animal
about NAIS and absurd concept. Chastised yet again by animal owners who take government-required steps,
what you can do owners, the USDA then stated, in November such as testing and vaccinating their animals,
to stop it, go to 2007, that NAIS was “voluntary at the federal would find themselves enrolled in the NAIS
www.farmandranch
freedom.org level.” At the same time, the USDA issued guide- premises registration database with or without
or call lines for funding states that implemented NAIS. their consent.
1-866-687-6452. The USDA stated that it would fund mandatory USDA has failed to follow any of the admin-
72 Wise Traditions WINTER 2008