Last month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (“APHIS”) issued the long-awaited proposed rule on Traceability for Livestock Moving Interstate. The new proposed system will replace the National Animal Identification System (“NAIS”) and will be primarily managed at the state level. The USDA is currently seeking comments on the proposed rule for Animal Disease Traceability. …
Information on the Existing Voluntary National Animal Identification System
I know that it has been a while since the agriculture community has talked about the National Animal Identification System (“NAIS”). As most of my readers know, the program is managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (“APHIS”) and participation is currently voluntary. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) expressed concern over NAIS. In February …
Dates For Your Calendar
Winter is always jammed packed with agriculture conferences and livestock events. I wish that I was in Seattle right now for the American Farm Bureau Federation (“AFBF”) annual meeting. I’m still debating whether I will be heading to the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado next week for the Simmental Show. It’s my favorite cattle show (and this blog made …
Livestock Producer’s Guide to FOIA
You may find a time when you may want to see the documents available to the public about yourself or your livestock operation. Maybe you want to see the files on your Confined Animal Feeding Operation (“CAFO”) or on your recent Forest Service (“FS”) livestock trespass ticket. Or possibly you would like information from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers …