After the USDA released its proposed rule for animal-disease traceability Tuesday, several livestock and agricultural groups issued statements, some in support and others opposed to the program. NCBA was relatively non-committal. The group’s chief veterinarian Elizabeth said “Cattlemen’s top priority is raising healthy cattle. As such, NCBA is supportive of an ADT program for cattle health purposes. R-CALF USA, on the other hand, expressed opposition to the plan, issuing a release titled “USDA spurns U.S. cattle industry: Issues overreaching, intrusive mandatory animal identification rule.” Read more…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture proposed a new, mandatory system Tuesday for tracking cattle, poultry and other farm animals to pinpoint the origin of diseases that can spread through herds and halt exports. Ranchers and farmers under the rules would be required to affix a unique identification number to animals transferred between states or tribal areas. The tracking system would allow federal officials to more quickly find the source of an outbreak and isolate the diseased animals, reducing the economic and public-health impacts, the USDA said. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a conference call said the