A Cattleman's Declaration of Independence from Mandated Electronic ID Tags
“Privacy and freedom have a greater value than convenience, and where there is no privacy there can be no freedom”
By Brett Kenzy
Whereas: American principles are based on the belief that our government exists to protect and defend the freedoms of its citizens, and
Whereas the current rule for disease traceability, the 2013 Animal Disease Traceability Rule (2013 ADT Rule) has proven itself to be a reliable, flexible, and affordable means to control and eradicate livestock disease by allowing multiple methods of traceability (including EID tags for those who choose them) as cited by the USDA APHIS’s “Regulatory Impact Analysis and Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis,” dated November 9, 2022, and
Whereas: that study itself admitted that a majority of cattle would need to be traceable to provide a meaningful level of disease prevention and this rule covers only 10-12% of cattle, and
Whereas: the comments received by USDA APHIS in the rule making process were overwhelmingly against the new rule, and
Whereas: USDA APHIS stated on its website updated August 29, 2024, after approving the new rule, that it “remains committed to implementing a modern system that tracks animals from birth to slaughter.” and
Whereas: it must be understood that livestock are raised in varying climates, regions and production systems and a one-size-fits-all approach is inappropriate and unworkable, and
Whereas: affordability and economic concerns are important to American citizens, either through direct costs or through taxation, and these concerns are ignored in the USDA-APHIS rule, and
Whereas: the funds allocated for this rule are vastly inadequate for its annual implementation, and
Whereas the EID tags are not proven to be more reliable than other forms of identification, and
Whereas: privacy and freedom have a greater value than convenience, and where there is no privacy there can be no freedom and this rule ignores this concern, and
Whereas: information has value and this rule extracts value from cattle producers without compensation, and
Now Therefore, be it resolved that I stand in opposition to the New USDA APHIS rule scheduled to go into effect on November 5, 2024 mandating Electronic Identification eartags in certain classes of livestock.
Brett Kenzy is a South Dakota Rancher and is the sitting President of R-Calf USA.
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