Other Countries
The European Union introduced its Trade Control and Expert System, or TRACES, in April 2004. The system provides a central database to track movement of animals within the EU and from third countries. In the EU, animals must be tagged with details of their origin and stamped with the traceability code of the abattoir when slaughtered. The tools used may vary from one country to another and can include ear tags, passports and bar codes, but must carry the same information.
Australia's National Livestock Identification System, or NLIS, is used to identify and track livestock from property of birth to slaughter using RFID devices and a central electronic database of an animal’s residency and animals it has interacted with. The government claims the system improves food safety and access to export markets, and assists with disease management. Farmers must register their property if they hold one or more heads of livestock including horses, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, deer and camels, though the NLIS will not confirm ownership of livestock. The system originates from a cattle-tracing system introduced in Australia in the 1960s to help fight bovine tuberculosis. The Australian system has over 11,000,000 phantom livestock in the system that do not exist. This system costs farmers money because of the increased handling time and lost margins when tags do not match in the system resulting in lower payments to farmers.
New Zealand is planning a similar National Animal Identification and Tracing system.
Read more about this topic: National Animal Identification System
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