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What
Is NAIS?
Can NAIS affect me?
Does NAIS stop disease?
How did it happen?
What can I do to help?
A video
clip about the NAIS to watch and send to everyone
you know from www.libertyark.net
Where can I get LOTS more information? See www.nonais.org
and www.libertyark.net
The majority of information on this page, is from www.nonais.org.
Thank you for your support.
What Is NAIS?
The National Animal ID program was originally designed
to give the big beef producers help in getting
export markets which required disease controls. The
idea is
that every single livestock animal in the United
States will be identified and tagged. All livestock
animal
movements will be tracked, logged and reported
to the government. The benefit is to the big factory
farms
who probably do need this type of regulation. They
get
to do single ID’s for large groups of animals.
Small farmers, pet owners and homesteaders will
have to tag and track every single animal.
There
are no exceptions - even small farms that sell direct
to local consumers will be required to pay the fees
and file all the paper work on all their animals. Even
horse, llama and other pet owners will be required to
participate in NAIS. Homesteaders who raise their own
meat and grandma with her one egg hen will also have
to register their homes as ‘farm premises’
and obtain a Premise ID, tag all their animals and submit
all the paperwork and fees. Absurd? Yes - There are
no exceptions under the current NAIS plan. The USDA
has slipped this plan in the back door without any legislation.
This is going to be very expensive and guess who is
going to pay for it in higher food prices… You!
Can NAIS Affect Me?
NAIS will help some big corporations, like the big beef
producers, by opening up export markets for them to
other countries.
NAIS
will hurt a lot of different people including consumers,
pet owners, children, homesteaders and small farmers.
Consumers
will face higher meat prices under NAIS because the
cost of producing meat will go up with the addition
of fees to the government to support the NAIS program.
The cost of other foods, like vegetables, will likely
also go up as well since the manure from meat animals
is used to fertilize the soil to grow better crops.
Most importantly, NAIS will result in many small farms
going out of business. The consolidation of the meat
industry into fewer, big, agri-biz producers means they
will have more control of the market and be able to
charge higher prices for the same product.
Pet
owners will be forced to register their family horse,
pet sheep, llamas and other ‘livestock’
that aren’t part of the food chain. This will
cost them money and be a hassle with paperwork and premise
ID fees each year. Furthermore, every time you want
to take your pet to the vet, on a trail ride or even
just cross the road you’ll have to submit paperwork
with the government and probably pay a fee. Every time.
In time, they plan to do the same for pet dogs and cats.
See PAWS legislation and the Vermont Pet Merchant bill
that requires you to register as a pet dealer if you
cat has kittens or your dog has puppies.
Children
who are in 4-H or Future Farmers of America will have
to register their parents house as a farm and get a
Premise ID as well as paying the annual fees and doing
paper work every time an animal is bought, sold, shown
or moved. This will also stifle county fairs which are
already on fragile footing. Figure you’ll not
be seeing livestock at fairs of the future - there will
just be the midway and amusement rides that are poorly
inspected, but no animals.
Homesteaders,
people who grow some of their own food, will have to
register with the government as a farm and obtain a
Premise ID. They’ll also have to pay the annual
fees associated with that and fill out the paperwork
on all of their livestock. Every time you have chicks,
goats, piglets or other animals born you’ll need
to register it with the government. Every time an animal
dies you’ll have to register it with the government.
Got a predator problem? Expect to fill out a lot of
paperwork. Have an animal escape the fence and cross
the road or go onto a neighbor’s property? Fill
out more forms and the neighbor may have to fill out
forms, too. Animals come on to your property uninvited?
More forms. And no, there are no exceptions. Every livestock
animal must be registered, tagged and tracked from birth
to death.
Small
Farmers who sell direct to their customers will be devastated.
Small farmers already work at higher costs than the
big factory farms. Under NAIS they’ll have to
identify each and every animal at a high cost because
they can’t use the group identification techniques
of the big Agri-Biz corporations. The big guys do all-in/all-out
animal management. Each mass group of animals are of
one gene stock and the same age. The factory farms need
only apply for one ID to cover the entire group of thousands
of animals. Small, traditional-style farmers have many,
genetically diverse animals of different ages on their
farms. Each individual animal will be required to have
an ID. The result is that the cost of farming will go
up greatly for small farmers. This is likely to be the
final nail in the coffin of small farming. Developers
will be over joyed as they buy up farm land at rock
bottom prices to divide up into condos and strip malls.
Rural America will turn dingy with pavement. Gone will
be the fields, pastures and meadows filled with grazing
livestock. Vermont can kiss it’s tourist industry
good-bye.
Sugar
Mountain Farm Customers who buy our pastured pork, pigs,
piglets, lambs and chickens will be looking at higher
prices because it will cost us more time and money to
fill out all the government’s paperwork and pay
their ridiculous new fees. I would estimate that this
will raise the price by $10 to $15 per animal, possibly
more since the full fee structure is not yet known.
More over, if you’re buying live animals like
laying hens, lambs or piglets then you’ll have
to get a Premise ID from the government for your home,
pay the annual Premise ID fee and do any paperwork for
each and every livestock animal you have as well as
paying the associated animal fees. Currently you save
money and get better meat by raising it yourself or
buying our pasture raised products. Under NAIS you’ll
pay more money for the same thing without any benefits.
Big
Agri-Biz are the clear winners under NAIS. They will
get expanded export markets and legal liability protection
at minimal cost. Because small farmers will be forced
out of business due to all the additional fees and paperwork
the big Agri-Biz corporations will gain more domestic
market, bigger monopolies, more market control and higher
profits. They’re salivating at the prospect. Not
only that, but it will be harder for individuals to
raise their own better quality food, it will cost them
more money and they’ll face more paperwork and
government regulation.
Just
what we all need - Not.
Does NAIS Stop Disease?
No. Despite recent claims by some, NAIS does nothing
to stop disease or contamination in the food supply.
NAIS was not intended for this purpose. The goal of
the National Animal Identification System is to provide
48-hour trace back to the farm of origin in the case
of problems so that the big agri-biz industry can increase
their exports to foreign markets. NAIS is about expanded
profits. Also realize that “48-hour track back” is
48 hours after the problem is detected. That could
be weeks or even months after the problem actually
occurred.
NAIS is not about disease prevention - it is about
track-back and more importantly expanded profits for
the big corporate
producers who want more export markets. Everything
else about NAIS is a ruse to get the public to swallow
their
swill.
Most
contamination of the food supply happens after the animals
leave the farm. For example if animal intestines are
improperly mixed with ground beef, a hydraulic hose
breaks in a meat cutting factory or if a cutting blade
breaks and leaves metal shards in the food it makes
the food unacceptible for human consumption. If the
problem is not reported at the factory and gets discovered
later after the food has already been distributed and
possibly sold to consumers then there is a recall. We
frequently hear about this happening in the news. There
is already a system to handle this type of problem.
We do not need a new layer of government, paperwork
and fees for this. Furthermore, the problem has nothing
to do with the farm which is what NAIS is focused on.
As
to disease, meat sold in stores and restaurants is already
USDA inspected at slaughter and processing. If there
were problems with disease in an animal then the inspectors
should catch it at that level. Again NAIS does not help
at all with disease prevention - it is after the fact
and duplication of existing systems. The scary reality
about meat from the big commercial producers is that
there are not enough USDA inspectors so the inspection
job is not getting done. This is part of why there are
so many recalls. If the USDA would do its job then there
would be no need for NAIS. NAIS is being used by the
USDA as a diversion to hide from the fact that they
aren’t up to snuff.
NAIS
does nothing to stop the spread of BSE (Mad Cow Disease).
It is believed that BSE is caused by the big Agri-Biz
corporations and factory farmers practice of grinding
up old cows and feeding them back to cows. The common
practice used to be to grind up cow parts and add them
to the cow feed to increase the protein levels of the
feed. This also saved money on the disposal of the slaughter
wastes. That practice has already been banned. Enforcing
that ban is the solution to BSE and related diseases.
NAIS
does not help with the much feared Avian Flu (H5N1)
which is spread by wild birds. The biggest threat of
bird flu and other diseases is to the large poultry
factory style operations which have mono-genetic cultures.
All of their livestock is the same genome and thus easily
wiped out by a single disease incidence. NAIS will do
nothing to protect them or consumers. NAIS will make
it very hard for regular people like you and me to keep
a backyard flock for egg and meat production. Once again
NAIS is the wrong tool being used on the wrong patient.
The real question here is if the government is forcing
NAIS down our throats why does the USDA turn around
and want to ship American chickens to China for slaughter
and then back here again for consumption. Think money.
A
better solution is for consumers to buy their meat from
local farmers who raise their livestock on pasture where
this is a non-issue. Buying local also means that your
food was produced locally, you support your local farmers
and less petroleum is used to ship the meat across the
country. We are being told that we should use less petrol,
right?! Buying local keeps your money in your community
rather than sending it far away to the pockets of big
corporate ‘farms’. I put farms in quotes
because what they do in their factories and feedlots
is so far away from farming it is a joke. Big Agri-Biz
does not like the Buy Local movement because it hurts
their profits. NAIS will devastate the Buy Local movement
- something Big Agri-Biz would love to see happen. Believe
me you won’t see Tyson and the other big boys
selling down at your local farmer’s market!
One
of the NAISty things about the USDA’s proposal
is that under NAIS they can come in and take your livestock
without a warrant, without due process, without a legal
hearing. They can then destroy or redistribute your
animals without compensation to you. Valuable breeding
stock can be wiped out in the crack of an inspector’s
handgun and you had better not get in their way or you
could go to prison. Failure to register your home or
farm with a Premise ID already faces a $1,000 a day
fine in some states. This is a violation of our Fourth
Amendment Constitutional rights as outlined in the Bill
of Rights.
NAIS
will not prevent disease but it will dramatically raise
costs for small farmers, homesteaders and ultimately
for consumers. It will cost us money in fees, fines,
tags and equipment. It will cost us time to fill out
all the mountains of paperwork and track every individual
little baby chick, every piglet, every lamb reporting
every ‘event’. This added cost will drive
many farmers out of business. The result will be a loss
of local small farms and a consolidation of our food
supply into the hands of fewer and fewer big corporations.
NAIS is another example of Big Brother government helping
Big Agri-Biz make more profits at the public’s
expense. Remember to follow the money trail.
How Did It Happen?
The USDA is rushing the National Animal Identification
System (NAIS) through as fast as it is legally allowed
to do. This minimizes comment from the users who will
be hit hardest: consumers, pet owners, small farmers
and homesteaders. The government is slipping NAIS through
as a regulation authorized under the Patriot Act rather
than having it be reviewed as legislation. This allows
them to get less public comment and notice. Comment
periods have already closed on many aspects without
people even being aware that NAIS exists.
Meanwhile,
the large ’stakeholders’, Big Agri-Biz,
have had lots of opportunities to shape NAIS to fit
their agenda at every turn of the draft development
process. This is not democracy in action - this is an
oligarchy of Big Govi-Corp doing what is best for their
bottom line profits.
NAIS
has its origins in the desire of the big meat producers
to be able to better sell their products in foreign
markets. Certain countries which import beef have
banned
US beef imports because of worries about disease and
contamination. In an attempt to open up these markets,
Big Agri-Biz came up with the original NAIS draft plan.
These
big business factory farms were joined by animal tag
manufacturers looking to maximize their market for unnecessary
and costly products - what better way than to require
all animals in America to be tagged!?! Making it mandatory
was just all the more delicious.
All
of this resulted in trade agreements between the United
States and other countries that require the United States
to implement electronic identification on all pets and
livestock for “Farm to Fork” tracking of
all meat.
These
groups were able to advance their plan without legislative
review by claiming it was a “Homeland Security”
issue to secure our national herd and food supply against
terrorists. This let the USDA to create NAIS as a
regulation
under the Patriot Act without the approval of our Congressional
representatives. The worst part is that NAIS will
consolidate
our food supply into the hands of fewer and fewer giant
corporations. The effect will be to endanger the very
national herd and food supply they claim to want to
protect - all while increasing the cost to consumers
and taking away our traditional rights to farm.
What
Can I Do to Help?
Get Informed
The government’s most powerful tool in this battle
for our rights is secrecy and apathy. Lets change that
and take back our great country!
Read
the Handout. It explains the background and dangers
of NAIS in a one sheet summary including web links to
supporting documentation.
Check out the Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQs) on
nonais.org which answer the basics.
See additional articles
from nonais.org and others
Extra Credit: Read the 84 pages of USDA draft regulations
for NAIS. See the Technical Documents section of the
right hand sidebar of this page.
Stay Informed
By staying informed you are empowering yourself against
the government and big corporations that would steal
away your rights and freedoms.
Get
email alerts from NoNAIS.org
Subscribe to the NoNAIS.org RSS feed or;
Bookmark NoNAIS.org and come back often to check out
what’s happening.
Extra Credit: Join a NoNAIS state by state discussion
list...see nonais.org
Speak Out
Let legislators, bureaucrats and other folks know what
you think about NAIS. If they realize that this is a
hot button topic they’ll want to be sure to come
down on the right side of the fence - the people’s
side.
Sign
a petition. This is the easiest thing to do but probably
the one most likely to be ignored by the government.
Give feedback to the USDA.
Email Neil Hammerschmidt who is the USDA Animal ID Coordinator.
Email or write your state legislative members. This
carries far more weight than a petition. See the sample
letters below. Paper letters have much more of an impact
than email and it only costs 39¢ for a first class
stamp. Even a simple postcard will do the trick.
Email or write to your Congressional representatives
in the House and Senate.
Extra Credit: Organize a rally to get media attention,
speak at a meeting or on a talk show.
Spread the Word
To break the government’s lock of secrecy we need
to inform more people about NAIS. Once people find out
about how the USDA is sneaking this through they get
upset and want to stop it. So spread the word!
Link
to NoNAIS.org on your web pages and blogs. See these
instructions. This also helps NoNAIS.org’s search
engine page ranking.
Send a letter to the editor of your local newspaper. This helps spread the word so that other people know
about the dangers of NAIS, can find this web site and
take action. See the sample letters below.
Pass out the NoNAIS handout to people you know, leave
it at gatherings, libraries, general stores, etc.
Hang-up the NoNAIS Poster and hang it up on
bulletin boards. This is an eye catcher that includes tear off
tabs with contact info to get people to come to NoNAIS.org
to find out more about NAIS. A postal address is included
for people who lack internet access.
Become a mobile billboard - Put a bumper sticker on
your car or hang the NoNAIS Poster. If you want you
can even print your own bumper stickers using the artwork
here.
Extra Credit: Place ads in your local newspapers and
advertising papers using your own ad design or one of
these ads. Local sales paper ad spots are often very
inexpensive running $10 to $150 per week depending on
ad size and newspaper circulation. This will reach a
great many people.
Bonus Credit: Tattoo NoNAIS.org across your forehead.
Note: this is only for extremists over the age of 18,
not recommended if you work for a Fortune 500 company,
permanent tattoos are, keep off the grass, void where
prohibited…
What ever you do, do not voluntarily signup for Premise
ID. It is a slippery slope down into fascist Big Brother
government. Many people are being “voluntarily”
signed up without their permission so watch out for
suspicious questionnaires in the mail or by phone. In
most states, you are not required at this time to sign
up for Animal ID or Premise ID, two of the components
of NAIS. Know your rights.
Feel
free to use the sample letters below which you can copy
to your email program or word processor, print, sign
and send. For a more powerful message, modify the letter
to fit your views or, best of all, write your own letters
for the greatest impact.
Sample
Letter #1:
I am very opposed to the National Animal ID System.
It is an invasion of our privacy and our rights. The
real reason for the system is to give profits to the
big meat exporters. Disease prevention can be better
achieved through simple bio-security procedures without
having to trample all over the Constitution. Please
stop the USDA and states from implementing Premise ID,
Animal ID and Animal Tracking. NAIS should be kept 100%
voluntary. At the very least, we need an exemption for
small farmers, homesteaders and pet livestock owners.
Please go to http://NoNAIS.org to learn more about this
unreasonable regulation.
Sample
Letter #2:
I am concerned that USDA’s National Animal Identification
System (NAIS) is going to destroy the wonderful Buy
Local movement that has just been getting its feet off
the ground. The burden of NAIS is going to be overwhelming
for small farmers who sell directly to customers.
There
is no need for tracking their animals nor is there any
need to track the animals of pet owners (horses, etc)
or homesteaders who are raising their own food. There
should be exemptions for these groups. NAIS might be
a good idea for those big, horrible factory farms and
for big farms that sell into the commercial food distribution
system, but it is a bad idea for local farmers.
People
interested in learning more about NAIS should go to
http://NoNAIS.org
“Should
I sign electronic petitions?” Yes, but I do not
have a lot of faith that they will be much good. I don’t
think that the government listens to electronic petitions
or puts much weight in them. Still, go ahead and do
it because it is easy to do and maybe something good
will come of it. However, do not just do that. Also
take other actions as outlined above.
“Can
I send money to NoNAIS.org?” No, I am not accepting
donations at this time. I have some ideas for printing
up masses of bumper stickers and decals to get the word
out, but that project is in the future. Your voice and
actions are what count most. Protecting our freedoms
is a long haul project so be prepared to write letters
every month to keep the ball rolling. If you really
want to spend money, buy ads in newspapers, on Google
and other places that will help spread the word. Some
people are already doing this with great results.
Talk
about NAIS. Get other people interested. Spread the
word. The government has conspired with big business
to keep this quiet too long. We must speak up and be
heard. What we need is the power of the voice of the
people. The force of people speaking up and rejecting
this absurd usurpation of our rights, our freedoms.
Take a stand now while you still can. Lets once again
make this be “America, the Land of the Free and
the Brave!”
Cheers,
-Walter
Jeffries
Sugar Mountain Farm
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
in Vermont
The information on this page, is from www.nonais.org.
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