SURVEY REVEALS HUGE SPENDING GAP ON eID

NSW Farmers is calling for a substantial investment from the state and federal governments to make their traceability reform achievable.

A move to electronic identifcation (eID) for sheep and goats will far exceed the $20 million offered by the federal government, and with a timeline set for mandatory tagging, farmers are in the dark on what fnancial support will be made available.

According to NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin, 80 per cent of NSW sheep and goat producers were not using eID at present, meaning there would need to be signifcant state and federal fnancial assistance to assist in the transition.

“Farmers are rightly becoming increasingly concerned about the costs associated with implementing eID for sheep and goats, following Minister Saunders’ mandating of the traceability system last year,” Mr Martin said.

“While the NSW Government’s timeline is public, it remains unknown what fnancial support will be made available to farmers so they can implement eID as they are now required to do.

“We asked farmers how much this will cost them and what training, education and support they need, and it’s clear both levels of government will need to open their wallets.”

NSW Agriculture Minister Dugald Saunders announced the state would join a national traceability effort in July 2022 following an outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in Indonesia. Under the National Livestock Identifcation System, sheep and farmed goats born after January 1, 2025 will require an electronic tag before leaving a property, and from January 1, 2027 all farmed sheep and goats will require an eID tag.

The federal government announced $20.1 million over three years to help the states transition to mandatory electronic tags.