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
http://animalagriculture.org/aboutNIAA/members/memberdirectory.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.”
http://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.”
http://animalagriculture.org/aboutNIAA/facts/factsheet.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).
http://animalagriculture.org/aboutNIAA/leadersstaff/BOD.asp. A
list of members leads to the same conclusion.
http://animalagriculture.org/aboutNIAA/members/memberdirectory.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.
http://animalagriculture.org/aboutNIAA/members/memberdirectory.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.
