NSW's peak farming body, NSW Farmers claim a move to electronic identification (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 financial support will be made available.
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"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," NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin said.
In September 2022, agriculture ministers agreed to transition towards nation-wide mandatory eID for sheep and goats by January 1st, 2025.
Under the National Livestock Identification 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.
In December 2022, Mr Martin welcomed the announcement, which was made in consultation with producers and industry groups but said that while the timeline answered some important questions, it was important to ensure costs were managed - especially for tags - so that producers did not end up paying for this reform.
"There's no point setting arbitrary timelines that can't be met, the transition to electronic tags must be done simply and efficiently to avoid potential problems," Mr Martin said at the time.
"It looks like the Minister wants to set us up for success here in NSW, and we'll continue to work through the NSW Sheep and Goat Traceability Reference Group to make sure we plan around potential obstacles.
"At the end of the day we want an affordable system that works for everyone."
Fast forward two months and the cost of the transition is back on the table, with NSW Farmers calling for a substantial investment from the state and federal governments to make their traceability reform achievable.
Mr Martin said 80 per cent of NSW sheep and goat producers were not using eID at present, meaning there would need to be significant state and federal financial assistance to assist in the transition.
"While the NSW Government's timeline is public, it remains unknown what financial support will be made available to farmers so they can implement eID as they are now required to do."
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A spokesperson from AgForce in Queensland said the group was strongly supportive around the move to mandatory EID tags.
"We see EID tags as an important element in biosecurity," the spokesperson said.
"We are keen for a transition that is cost-effective and are keen to work with the government for best outcomes.
"It will tie in with the NLIS and help tidy up issues with traceability.
"We are suggesting producers start early with some animals to meet the deadline.
"It will be a much easier transition if tags are slowly introduced.
"By the cut off date, it should then only be a small task to tag the rest of the animals."
Joe Keynes, President of Livestock SA said their Traceability Steering Committee had just signed off on a business plan to go to the SA Government.
"Traceability is important for biosecurity and also market access" Mr Keynes said.
"However, we would like to see a continual information flow to producers.
"Right now we are seeing a range of reactions to the mandatory system and even though we are on track with the government timeline, there are people who aren't sure about what is required."
Mr Keynes said he hoped a government announcement around funding for the scheme would be imminent.
"The scheme needs to be cost-effective and fit for purpose," he said.
"We also have a number of producers seeking exemption for livestock being sent direct to slaughter.
"This is an ongoing issue for producers."
In NSW, Mr Martin said the equipment producers will need to purchase can range from a couple of thousand dollars for a wand reader, to tens of thousands of dollars for eID drafters.
"Users of eID reported their costs ranged from $40,000 to $70,000, and with 66pc of producers surveyed saying they will need to modify infrastructure on their farms, the costs of the total rollout are going to be significant even before the cost of tags and readers are taken into account," he said.
"Producers want certainty that NLIS eID tags will be affordable not just now, but well into the future, and there is a growing concern about increased tag and NLIS device costs.
In Western Australian, the McGowan Government last month announced $3.4 million to support the introduction of mandatory electronic identification for sheep and goats in the state.
In November, 2021 the WA NLIS Sheep and Goat Advisory Group (SGAG) was established to enhance awareness and preparedness for the anticipated national agreement to mandate individual electronic identification (eID) in sheep and goats.
The recent threat of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) is partly behind the push to national traceability.
FMD would have devastating consequences for Australia and is estimated to have an $80 billion direct impact to our economy.
