U.S. livestock tracking system may begin mid-2004
"U.S. farmers and ranchers will take the first step toward a nationwide animal tracking system in mid-2004, a program intended to swiftly pinpoint the history of livestock suspected of mad cow disease or other dangerous diseases, program developers said on Monday. . . The program would focus on beef and dairy cattle, hogs and sheep at first. Horses, fish, poultry, goats, camelids such as llamas, and cervids such as deer and elk, would come next.
'Electronic identification may be necessary for efficient and accurate data collection and animal tracking in some species or in particular animal movement scenarios,' the web site said.
Under the timeline written by developers, all cattle, swine and "small ruminants" being shipped between states would have an individual or group identification number by July 2005. By July 2006, all remaining species would have animal and farm IDs."
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