Hello Everyone,
This is information on the NAIS, that I emailed you all about last week. Please take the time
to read this. It will effect all of us. Do you like buying your food locally? Do you like knowing who and how your food is being raised? Please read and call your representatives. This has got to be stopped now, before it is fully implemented. Thank you all.
Blessings on you,
Barb Gallegly
National Animal Identification System (NAIS)
Q&A-The Hard Questions
1. What is the NAIS? A scheme hatched by the federal government and corporate agribusiness to tag every animal in the US with an identity number and to track every animal through processing. The excuse for it is the discovery of two cases of mad cow disease (BSE or bovine spongiform encephalopathy).
2. What does it require? It requires every farm in the country to register as a “premises.” Each registered premises will then have to register & tag every alpaca, bison, cow, emu, goat, horse, llama, sheep, swine, and all poultry. (As far as we know right now, catfish and goldfish are exempted.) It provides no exemptions. If you have as much as one chicken, you must register.
3. What does it mean? This is not about controlling disease, it’s about controlling farmers. When social security was first introduced, the government promised the people that the number would never be used for “identification purposes.” But today you can’t get health care, insurance, a bank account, an apartment, a job, or your tooth pulled without giving a social security number.
4. Isn’t it voluntary? Only for now. The present USDA “Draft Strategic Plan” calls for making it mandatory by January 2008. “Mandatory” means that they will fine, arrest, or jail you if you refuse to comply. For the system to work, the government obviously must force every farm and every farmer to register every animal, and no one will be able to seek veterinary care, transport, sell, or process animals without registry. In other words, the freedom to farm that has belonged to mankind since Creation will be abolished.
5. Who and what is behind the NAIS? According to the USDA National Animal Identification System (NAIS) Draft Strategic Plan 2005 to 2009, page 3, paragraph 1, at animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp, “In 2002, the National Institute of Animal Agriculture (NIAA) initiated meetings that led to the development of the U.S. Animal Identification Plan (USAIP).” “Driving force – The strongest driving force for developing the NAIS is the risk of an outbreak of a foreign animal disease (FAD). There is broad support for NAIS among government, industry, and public stakeholders.” (“Stakeholders are defined as those individuals and groups in the public and private sectors who are interested in and/or affected by the Department's activities and decisions.” www.ci.doe.gov/cigapol.htm.)
6. Who is the National Institute of Animal Agriculture? NIAA website states, “The mission of the National Institute for Animal Agriculture is to provide a forum for building consensus and advancing solutions for animal agriculture and to provide continuing education and communication linkages to animal agriculture professionals.” animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...eet.asp. In fact, the NIAA is a national agribusiness organization whose purpose appears to be lobbying government for laws and policies that favour agribusiness. A brief glance at the board of directors seems to confirm that, since all are drawn from agribusiness companies, industry groups, or schools of agriculture (which notoriously favour corporate agribusiness over small farmers and sustainable agriculture). animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...BOD.asp. A list of members leads to the same conclusion. animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp.
7. Who will bear the burden of NAIS? Small farmers, and especially those engaged in the New Agriculture (“permaculture” or “sustainable agriculture”). First, they will be forced to pay for NAIS, at least in part. Second, they will be forced to work for NAIS. In the words of the NAIS Draft Strategic Plan, page 14, paragraph 3, “All groups will need to provide labour.” NAIS will add yet another cost disadvantage to small farmers and the New Agriculture, and will make local agriculture less competitive with agribusiness. animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp.
8. Won’t NAIS help prevent and control disease? No, NAIS isn’t about preventing or controlling disease, it’s about marketing. When a case of mad cow disease (or any other disease) surfaces, NAIS aims to protect meat producers’ markets by tracking animals through processing to “prove” that only a few animals are affected and so prevent a public revulsion against their meat. The most effective way to control disease is to produce meat and milk for local instead of national markets and “closed herd” techniques.
This is information on the NAIS, that I emailed you all about last week. Please take the time
to read this. It will effect all of us. Do you like buying your food locally? Do you like knowing who and how your food is being raised? Please read and call your representatives. This has got to be stopped now, before it is fully implemented. Thank you all.
Blessings on you,
Barb Gallegly
National Animal Identification System (NAIS)
Q&A-The Hard Questions
1. What is the NAIS? A scheme hatched by the federal government and corporate agribusiness to tag every animal in the US with an identity number and to track every animal through processing. The excuse for it is the discovery of two cases of mad cow disease (BSE or bovine spongiform encephalopathy).
2. What does it require? It requires every farm in the country to register as a “premises.” Each registered premises will then have to register & tag every alpaca, bison, cow, emu, goat, horse, llama, sheep, swine, and all poultry. (As far as we know right now, catfish and goldfish are exempted.) It provides no exemptions. If you have as much as one chicken, you must register.
3. What does it mean? This is not about controlling disease, it’s about controlling farmers. When social security was first introduced, the government promised the people that the number would never be used for “identification purposes.” But today you can’t get health care, insurance, a bank account, an apartment, a job, or your tooth pulled without giving a social security number.
4. Isn’t it voluntary? Only for now. The present USDA “Draft Strategic Plan” calls for making it mandatory by January 2008. “Mandatory” means that they will fine, arrest, or jail you if you refuse to comply. For the system to work, the government obviously must force every farm and every farmer to register every animal, and no one will be able to seek veterinary care, transport, sell, or process animals without registry. In other words, the freedom to farm that has belonged to mankind since Creation will be abolished.
5. Who and what is behind the NAIS? According to the USDA National Animal Identification System (NAIS) Draft Strategic Plan 2005 to 2009, page 3, paragraph 1, at animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp, “In 2002, the National Institute of Animal Agriculture (NIAA) initiated meetings that led to the development of the U.S. Animal Identification Plan (USAIP).” “Driving force – The strongest driving force for developing the NAIS is the risk of an outbreak of a foreign animal disease (FAD). There is broad support for NAIS among government, industry, and public stakeholders.” (“Stakeholders are defined as those individuals and groups in the public and private sectors who are interested in and/or affected by the Department's activities and decisions.” www.ci.doe.gov/cigapol.htm.)
6. Who is the National Institute of Animal Agriculture? NIAA website states, “The mission of the National Institute for Animal Agriculture is to provide a forum for building consensus and advancing solutions for animal agriculture and to provide continuing education and communication linkages to animal agriculture professionals.” animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...eet.asp. In fact, the NIAA is a national agribusiness organization whose purpose appears to be lobbying government for laws and policies that favour agribusiness. A brief glance at the board of directors seems to confirm that, since all are drawn from agribusiness companies, industry groups, or schools of agriculture (which notoriously favour corporate agribusiness over small farmers and sustainable agriculture). animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...BOD.asp. A list of members leads to the same conclusion. animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp.
7. Who will bear the burden of NAIS? Small farmers, and especially those engaged in the New Agriculture (“permaculture” or “sustainable agriculture”). First, they will be forced to pay for NAIS, at least in part. Second, they will be forced to work for NAIS. In the words of the NAIS Draft Strategic Plan, page 14, paragraph 3, “All groups will need to provide labour.” NAIS will add yet another cost disadvantage to small farmers and the New Agriculture, and will make local agriculture less competitive with agribusiness. animalagriculture.org/aboutNI...ory.asp.
8. Won’t NAIS help prevent and control disease? No, NAIS isn’t about preventing or controlling disease, it’s about marketing. When a case of mad cow disease (or any other disease) surfaces, NAIS aims to protect meat producers’ markets by tracking animals through processing to “prove” that only a few animals are affected and so prevent a public revulsion against their meat. The most effective way to control disease is to produce meat and milk for local instead of national markets and “closed herd” techniques.
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