Farmer pushes proposal for traceability

The mandatory electronic tagging of beef cattle to allow paddock-to-plate traceability at the swish of a barcode reader could earn farmers dividends, says Waingaro sheep and beef farmer Rob Macnab.

Mr Macnab, chairman of Meat & Wool New Zealand's mid northern Sheep and Beef Council, compared cattle without an RFID (radio frequency identification) tag to a pretty painting by an unknown artist.

"If you know where it's come from and who has painted it it's worth a lot more," said Mr Macnab, who admitted he initially was against the National Animal Identification and Tracing scheme.

The mandatory scheme, which is still under development but due to be in place by 2011, will cost farmers between 60c and $2.50 per animal a year.

The scheme is opposed by Federated Farmers on the grounds that the information could be used for taxation purposes.

"This has to happen because people who eat food want to know where it has come from," Mr Mcnab said.

His endorsement comes after Meat & Wool New Zealand chairman Mike Petersen pressed for application of the scheme to be accelerated to maintain New Zealand's market share.

Mr Macnab said he changed his mind on complusory tagging when he heard from a Meat & Wool New Zealand representative that New Zealand was lagging behind Australia and the rest of the world in the matter.

"The top end of the market want it absolutely, the next 10 or 20 per cent of the market want to go where the top end is. What do we do? Wait until we are driven out of our first market?"

Mr Macnab used Icebreaker, the New Zealand-owned company making clothes from New Zealand merino, as an example of what could be done with traceability.

"You buy one of their jackets, scan the bar code and can read all about the story of the station where the sheep was raised."

Mr Macnab described the recent discovery of a brain condition in a New Zealand sheep sent to Belgium for testing as another close call for the industry.

Maf recently went to great pains to explain the difference between the harmless condition, called atypical scrapie, and the dangerous classical scrapie disease because markets could confuse the two.

Atypical scrapie, also known as Nor 98, is harmless to humans or animals and every country that has looked for it has found it.

Mr Macnab was critical of his fellow farmers who voted, in a recent Meat & Wool New Zealand referendum, to scrap the wool levy which included scrapie research.

"As farmers we have to be prepared to invest in our industry to cover these bases otherwise the implications could be devastating for all farming families," Mr Macnab said.

"New Zealand needs to maintain its world leading reputation in our scientists and research to ensure when the next issue arises, then we have the capability and credibility to address it."

James Parsons, Meat & Wool New Zealand board member for the north North Island, said traceability had become commoditised as all beef producing nations were moving towards it.

Mr Parsons said Australian farmers were hoping New Zealand did not sign up for a traceability scheme since Japanese supermarkets began a marketing campaign based around the fact that all of its beef was 100 per cent traceable from paddock to plate.

- © Fairfax NZ News