Just Say NO to NAIS – National Animal Identification System!
I sent this to the following people last night. Please consider contacting your own State representatives regarding this bureaucratic threat to the small farm and self-sufficient way of life lived and dreamed-of by many Americans.
To Senator Mark Udall:
To Governor Bill Ritter:
To Congresswoman Diana DeGette:
To Senator Michael Bennet:
As one of your constituents, I ask that you please keep your eyes out for ANY attempt to legislate or bureaucratically mandate (via the USDA) a mandatory National Animal Identification System (NAIS):
http://animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/
The USDA is trialing this on a volunteer-basis with the end-goal of making it mandatory. Many of us have reason to believe that the rules were written by big Agribusiness. Their goals are NOT taking into account the devastating effect such a system would have on small-scale farmers, and self-sufficient Americans. If I have a couple of goats and a dozen chickens in my rural backyard, how am I supposed to afford the time and money that would be required to license/register these animals, install the computer chip required, and report on their every move – even if that move is into my oven?
And, just as troubling, the people who wrote the NAIS rules allow a huge corporate “chicken farm” to count all of their thousands of animals as one “unit”. So thousands of chickens kept in confined cages in a dirty environment only have to be registered ONCE, yet I would have to register twelve times for my dozen chickens?
Please keep your eye out for this. Please don’t let the language fool you or your constituents into thinking it is being done for the public good. Please consider the “other side” of their argument and the detriment to the small scale farmer and self-sufficient family just trying to get by and live the American dream.
Thank you for your time and consideration.
Kind regards…
How do we sign/send this petition? I sadly don’t have the senators/represeatives addresses. Thx,
Jodie
What a bunch of malarky! NAIS is a powerful tool for the good. The small farmer and rancher is supporting this and just protectionist kooks are not!
The homesteaders and the rest of the “little people” can not afford to do all that NAIS will require, and it is not needed!!
The reason that NAIS is even making headway is it is another way to “tax” the people and keep them dependent on the “food grid”.
Food that is not as healthy as it should or could be if you raised your own.
When did we stop doing things for ourselves?? The pioneer spirit seems to be long gone.
I think if the animals are going to be sold commercially for food, then NAIS is a good idea. I think the legislation ought to make optional the tracking of food animals for personal use. The issue here is food safety, being able to trace meat/”byproducts” back to the ranch, if not the animal, it came from, in case of an outbreak of food borne illness. Surely no reasonable person can oppose this? Are fowl banded? If so, ID banding ought to be a suitable alternative to the microchipping.