June 25, Raleigh, National Animal ID System Meeting

The USDA will hold a “listening session” on the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) in at the McKimmon Center, 1101 Gorman Street, in Raleigh, NC on June 25, from 9am to 4pm.

This is part of a series of meetings on NAIS, and it is critical for proponents of small farms, diversified agriculture and heritage breed preservation to attend and voice your opinion on this industrial ag initiative to trace every animal on every farm and homestead in the country. CFSA opposes NAIS, and you can learn more about the proposed program by visiting http://farmandranchfreedom.org/content/articles-and-newsletters.

Registration is required to attend the June 25 meeting; to register, you can:
1) Pre-register online: Send an email to NAISSessions@aphis.usda.gov In the subject line of the e-mail, indicate your name (or organization name) and the location of the meeting you plan to attend. If you wish to present public comments, please include your name (or organization name) and address in the body of the message.
2) Pre-register by Phone: call 301-734-0799
3) Register the day of the meeting: From 8 am - 9am on the day of the meeting

The public can submit written comments at the meeting, as well as make oral statements. The Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance has sample comments you can use for ideas, as well as alternatives for meeting the purported goals of NAIS, the protection of livestock from pandemic disease.

The afternoon part of the meeting will be "facilitated sessions," where the attendees will be divided into groups to develop solutions. Be prepared to politely disagree with the facilitator. If they claim that a "consensus" has been reached with an answer that you don't agree with, say so!

You can also submit comments online at:
http://www.regulations.gov/fdmspublic/component/main?main=DocketDetail&d=APHIS-2009-0027

Helpful tips for using the government comments site: Click on the yellow balloon under the "add comments" column. Fill out the required sections, and type in your comments. If you have long comments, it works best to type them up in a document, and then copy & paste them into the comment box. Then click "next step." You should get a confirmation number at the end of the process. If you don't, double check that you've filled in all the required fields and clicked all the "next step" buttons.

Or mail to:
ATTN NAIS
Surveillance and Identification Programs
National Center for Animal Health Programs, VS, APHIS,
4700 River Road Unit 200
Riverdale, MD 20737

At similar sessions in other states so far, the response has been overwhelmingly against NAIS. Let’s keep this grassroots momentum going when the USDA comes to Raleigh with a big turnout. Certainly our region’s industrial animal producers such as the NC Pork Producers Council will be there to speak in favor of NAIS, and it will be vital for small farms to be there in force to balance the influence of big ag.

Thanks
Roland

Roland McReynolds, Esq.
CFSA Executive Director
PO Box 448
Pittsboro, NC 27312
Ph: 919-542-2402
Fax: 919-542-7401
www.carolinafarmstewards.org