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Take Action: Stop NAIS

NAIS would require farmers to attach electronic tags to their animals so that their movements could be tracked in case of a disease concern. While factory farms get exemptions that would allow them to use a single identification for groups of animals kept together from birth to death, smaller farmers would be burdened with tagging and tracking each one of their animals individually.

While national implementation of NAIS has been stalled by public opposition and Congressional funding cuts (OCA activists helped convince Congress to slash NAIS funding to $5.3 million, 1/3 of USDA's request), some states have begun enforcing laws that require farmers to register their farms with the government. Wisconsin was the first state in the nation to require mandatory livestock premises registration and, in October, it became the first state to convict a farmer for not registering. Patrick Monchilovich was fined $389.50 and ordered to comply with the law.

Please use the form below to send the following note to the USDA, your Congresspersons, and the Wisconsin NAIS Coordinators who are going forward with the prosecution of an Amish farmer for refusing to register his homestead with the state.

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February 09, 2010

Subject:

I was very discouraged to hear that Wisconsin recently became the first state to enforce a mandatory premises registration law when it convicted and fined a sustainable farmer with a small grazing herd for not registering and ordered him to comply. What a tragedy that a farmer who provides environmental benefits and safe food to his community would be made an example of in this way!

Please discontinue the National Animal Identification System. 
  
1. NAIS is not an effective animal health program. Tracking only deals with the problems after the fact, it does not prevent or treat any disease.

2. NAIS will not improve food safety because the tracking ends at the time of slaughter, while food contamination is only discovered afterward.

3. The only beneficiaries of NAIS are the technology companies who make the electronic tags and tracking systems and the factory farms that raise animals from birth to death in separate lots and don't have to tag animals individually.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

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