Sheep eID rollout - make it right before making it mandatory

NSW Farmers and WoolProducers Australia are calling on the NSW Government to rethink its mandatory electronic identification (eID) rollout for sheep and goats, warning farmers are being forced to bear unnecessary costs and compliance burdens before the national traceability system is ready. Both organisations support strong biosecurity and effective livestock traceability but are calling for full mandatory implementation to be deferred until the system is ready, and for existing transitional provisions to be retained to prevent double tagging. NSW Farmers Wool Committee Chair, Craig Mitchell, said full mandatory implementation must be backed by reliable systems, adequate infrastructure and fair funding arrangements. He said producers were particularly concerned about the requirement to electronically tag older sheep and goats already fitted with compliant visual National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) tags. “Farmers who have done the right thing and complied with existing identification requirements should not be forced to tag the same animals twice simply because the government has changed the rules,” Mr Mitchell said. “These animals are already identified and traceable, yet producers are being asked to bear the cost of another tag, additional labour and unnecessary livestock handling. “There's also an animal welfare impact from having to bring stock back through the yards and handle them again, all without a clearly demonstrated improvement in traceability. “Producers understand the importance of biosecurity, but we need a system that is practical, affordable and actually delivers the outcomes it's supposed to achieve.” WoolProducers Australia CEO, Jo Hall, said the wool industry had consistently maintained that support for mandatory eID was conditional on appropriate national arrangements being in place. “Effective livestock traceability is essential to protecting Australia's biosecurity, our livestock industries and our international market access,” Ms Hall said. “However, mandating electronic identification before the national database and supporting systems are fully operational risks imposing significant costs on producers without delivering the traceability improvements the industry has been promised. “Producers cannot be expected to keep absorbing additional costs and compliance obligations while fundamental questions about system readiness remain unresolved.” Both organisations have also raised concerns about delays to the NLIS database uplift project, inconsistent scanning and reporting practices, and the cumulative costs of electronic tags, equipment, labour and ongoing compliance. Mr Mitchell said the NSW Government needed to listen to producers and address these concerns before proceeding with full mandatory implementation. “This isn't about resisting better traceability. It's about getting the implementation right and ensuring farmers aren't left paying the price for a system that isn't ready,” Mr Mitchell said. Ms Hall said retaining transitional identification arrangements would be an important step towards ensuring producers were treated fairly. “Good biosecurity policy must be built on sound systems, practical implementation and genuine consultation with the people expected to make it work,” Ms Hall said. “The NSW Government must address these outstanding concerns and demonstrate the system is ready before imposing further costs and obligations on producers.” NSW Farmers

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