Extension Responds: BSE
Why Premises Registration?
WISCONSIN LIVESTOCK IDENTIFICATION CONSORTIUM-DECEMBER 2003
Premises Registration is the first step...
Premises registration is the first step you can take to protect your investment in Wisconsin 's livestock industry. Without a data base of locations where livestock are produced, raised and held, our industry will continue to be unprepared should a case of BSE be discovered here as it was this past year in Canada . Imagine if our state borders were closed to livestock or meat product movement as the Canadian borders have been. Premises registration isn't the entire answer. It is only the first step, but without it our industry and perhaps your livelihood is in jeopardy.
The time to register will never be better…
There is no better time to register your livestock premises, be it a farm a production site, a feed yard, or a livestock market. Early premises registrations are free. If you agree that protecting your investment and your industry is important, why not do your part now. Registering your premises does not increase your liability, it actually provides you with a level of protection of your investments. The longer we wait to get this system in place, the greater the price we may all have to pay someday for not doing the right thing now!
Each premises registration brings us closer…
Each premises registration brings us closer to the day when Wisconsin 's livestock industry will be prepared to respond within 48 hours to a disease outbreak or diseased animal identification. The goal is to be able to trace back from an identified problem animal to each location where that animal has been in contact with other animals, all the way back to its birth. Premises registration is the first step. The next step will be to identify each animal with a unique official identification number linked to its premises.
Taking that next step beyond premises registration… “Animal identification”
Taking that next step beyond premises registration will involve you selecting an organization with whom you choose to work. You may prefer to work with a breed association, an industry group, or one of many private companies expected to service this need. WLIC will work with each group to obtain the key animal ID items to meet the state and federal regulatory needs. Registering your premises with WLIC leaves you free to find the animal ID provider to best meet your needs and your timetable.
The final step beyond premises registration… “Animal tracking”
The final step will be to record animal movement from one registered premises to another. This is the biggest step of all and will require that all premises are registered. We can accomplish this one if we are working together toward the common goal of protecting our industry. Completing these steps may take years, but if we don't start now…if you don't register your site now, we may never get where we need to go. It's one small step. Let's take it together.
Register your premises…
Register your premises by contacting: Robert Fourdraine at rfourdraine@WIID.org or 608-848-1907. Wisconsin Livestock Identification Consortium, 135 Enterprise Drive , Suite ID, Verona , WI 53593-0230
Your information will be held private in a secure database. In addition, you hold control of your personal information by establishing your own user name and password.
Signing up your premises or location does not obligate you to participate in the next steps of the initiative which is animal identification.
WISCONSIN LIVESTOCK IDENTIFICATION CONSORTIUM-DECEMBER 2003