Stop National
Animal ID |
Getting Congress' Attention by Judith McGeary If you are among the many people who have been working diligently against the National Animal Identification System (NAIS)—writing your legislators, talking to friends and neighbors, and circulating petitions—you’re likely wondering if your efforts have made an impact. In summer 2007 I spent 10 days in our nation’s capital, lobbying against the NAIS, and I want to share with you what I learned in meetings with representatives and senators, and their staff members, including how you can make your anti-NAIS efforts more effective. Why
Oppose NAIS? 1. NAIS is not an effective way to stop animal disease.
2. NAIS will not improve food safety.
3. NAIS is expensive and will hurt our economy.
4. The costs of NAIS will unfairly burden pet owners, hobby farmers, small-scale farmers, and sustainable producers. These animal owners will face higher costs than industrial producers because of economies of scale and because USDA has structured the program in their favor. Factory farms of poultry and hogs, for example, will get group identification numbers, but pastured poultry producers must tag each chicken. 5. NAIS will make us more vulnerable to terrorism, not less.
6. Our limited resources, both government and private, would be better spent on preventive measures, including:
7. NAIS infringes on our constitutional rights, including due process, privacy, and religious freedom.
Judith McGeary is an attorney in Austin, Texas, who together with her husband runs a small grass-based farm with horses, cattle, sheep, and poultry. She is executive director of the Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance, where you can get tools to help fight NAIS—from educating your neighbors to lobbying your legislators. This article appeared in Autumn 2007 issue of Rural Heritage. |
PO Box 2067, Cedar Rapids IA 52406-2067
Phone: 319-362-3027 Fax: 319-362-3046 E-Mail: |
27 July 2007