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Southeastern membership chair addresses 300 in ArkansasArkansas R-CALF USA Southeastern Membership Chair Joel Gill recently spoke to a crowd of more than 300 people about the U.S. Department of Agriculture's proposed National Animal Identification System as a guest of the Arkansas Animal Producer's Association. "R-CALF does not support a mandatory Animal ID program, nor a centralized database," said Gill, of Pickens, Miss. "R-CALF does support a voluntary animal health traceback system that ensures the protection of individual data and one that incorporates existing identification systems, such as brand programs. "We are working to implement Mandatory Country-of-Origin Labeling (M-COOL) so consumers will have access to more information about the origin of their beef," he noted. "Independent U.S. cattle producers need to be able to market the fact that they produce the safest, most wholesome and best tasting beef in the world under the best of conditions." Jane Williams, of Bluffton, organized the event and said that for many people, the meeting was an eye-opener. "Everyone there, for the most part, was against NAIS," she said. "The purpose of the meeting was to form ARAPA, and to inform the public about NAIS," continued Williams. "We want to work with other organizations, such as R-CALF. "We had people drive more than six hours for the meeting, and everyone appreciated it because we are working to find solutions," she noted. "R-CALF is on the right track because it is working to see that our cattle and beef aren't commingled with other countries' cattle and beef," said R-CALF USA Arkansas Membership Chair Bill Adams. "We would have our South Korean market back if we had Mandatory COOL in place and could separate USA beef from Canadian beef." Adams said area producers also are very concerned about USDA's proposal to make Animal ID mandatory. Date: 8/24/06
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