Tennessee Animal Id Program Update

The goal of Tennessee’s Animal Id Program is to register as many premises or locations of which livestock reside in or pass through as possible. Premises registration is the foundation of the National Animal Identification System or NAIS and our current focus here in Tennessee.  We currently have nearly 12,000 premises registered.  Tennessee really is the volunteer state. We rank towards the top nationwide of the states that have a voluntary premises registration program. 

The following are a few key points relative to NAIS:

Protect your premises and your livelihood

• Your voluntary participation means that you will be notified quickly when a disease outbreak might put your animals at risk.

• Choosing to participate ensures you will receive the information you need – when you need it most – to protect your animals and your investment.

• With timely, accurate information, we can contain a disease outbreak more quickly and more effectively.

• Rapid disease response limits the impact of the outbreak on your operation—and could even stop disease spread before it reaches your animals.

Protect your access to markets

• Choosing to participate in NAIS helps preserve the marketability of your animals.

• NAIS information allows for precise quarantines based on accurate information—keeping markets open for unaffected producers in a disease outbreak.

• Market demands are increasing in importance, and a number of other countries are already using animal ID systems to gain a competitive edge.

• Voluntary participation helps ensure that you and other American producers stay competitive in domestic and international trade.

• The greater the level of participation in NAIS, the greater the potential to expand your marketing opportunities at home and abroad.

Reduce hardships caused by an animal disease outbreak in your community

• Rapid disease response reduces the number of producers impacted by an outbreak.

• Fewer affected producers means less hardship associated with an outbreak—the loss of irreplaceable breeding stock and bloodlines and the animal pain and death caused by eradication efforts.

• It also reduces the economic strain (decreased incomes, lost jobs, loss of animals and livelihoods) on affected communities.

• The faster the disease response, the faster an animal disease is isolated, the sooner life gets back to normal for everyone.

• Choosing to participate demonstrates your total commitment to doing everything you can to protect your animals and your neighbors.

It’s voluntary

• Participation is your choice.

• USDA has no plans to make participation in any component of NAIS mandatory.

• Individual States may choose to keep participation voluntary or not, based on local needs.

• USDA strongly believes that the best approach to NAIS is a voluntary system driven by the States and the private sector.

• You decide—based on your needs—to participate in one, two, or all three components of NAIS.

USDA and the State of Tennessee will protect individuals’ private information

• Federal law protects individuals’ private information and confidential business information from disclosure.

• Animal health officials will have access to your information only in the case of an animal disease event.

• The governor has signed a law stating that any information collected for Animal Identification purposes is protected from the open records act.

It’s a partnership

• NAIS is a voluntary program designed by the States, industry, and producers.

• NAIS continues to evolve to meet producer demands.

• NAIS only works if the States, industry, and producers actively shape and use the program.  Participation and input from producers is critical to ensure NAIS makes sense for everyone.

To register your premises or to gain more info about NAIS please visit our website at tennessee.gov/agriculture  or call 615-837-5189.