Sheep tag problems 'not tackled'

THE fundamental problems associated with the National Sheep Identification Scheme (NSIS) have not been addressed by the Department of Agriculture, the IFA has claimed.

Sheep Committee chairman Laurence Fallon acknowledged that the department had made a gesture towards simplifying the scheme in scrapping the individual reconciliation element for a flock based reconciliation approach.

"This move will certainly simplify what was an impossible requirement to reconcile individually identified sheep," he said. Mr Fallon said the department has not really considered IFA proposals for a workable and practical system of sheep identification and recording. He said the IFA proposals were based on a permanent flock tag for all breeding sheep on the farm and an individual tag for all animals entering the food chain. In addition, the IFA had put forward proposals for a practical and convenient sheep register involving a summary of the dispatch documents which record all sheep movements. Mr Fallon said the department seem intent on maintaining a complex and unworkable individual identification system which adds nothing to traceability over and above the more simplified proposals from the IFA. "The current system is extremely complex and creates a heavy bureaucratic burden on sheep farmers without any benefits over and above the more simple and practical proposals from IFA," he said. Mr Fallon said the department will have to seriously address simplification of their complex sheep identification system and move towards a more workable and practical system.