Protect Traditional

Rights to Farm

Just say No to NAIS!

NoNAIS. org

What is NAIS? NAIS is the USDA's National Animal Identification System

Draft Strategic Plan to let the government track the births, deaths, co-mingling

and all movements of all livestock in the United States.

http://animalid.aphis.usda.gov/nais/about/pdf/NAIS_Draft_Strategic_Plan_42505.pdf

Which animals are covered? Currently horses, cattle, goats, poultry

(chickens, ducks, etc), sheep, swine, alpacas, llamas, bison, deer and elk. NAIS

is not limited to these animals and may also be extended to include dogs,

rabbits & other animals. See: http://nonais.org/index.php/2006/02/18/

Who must participate? Anyone with any animal from the above

current list, or future ammendments to that list, will be required to obtain the 7-

digit Premise ID Number (PIN). NAIS is being applied down to the backyard

level. The owner of a pet Potbelly pig will be subject to the same regulations as

the factory farm with 20,000 hens on the premises. There will be no exceptions,

and the anticipated fine is $1,000 per incident per day for non-compliance.

How will the beasts be numbered? Each animal will be assigned a

unique 15-digit Animal Identification Number. Different species will be tagged

in different ways. For example: injected Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)

micro-chips, RFID button tags, RFID SwifTacs tags and RFID ear tags at a cost of

about $3 to $20 per animal. Large producers will be able to use one ID number

for tens of thousands of animals while most small farmers, homesteaders & pet

owners must tag each individual animal and report individual events.

What 'events' must we report? Any change of ownership; co-

mingling of animals owned by different entities; movement of animals off of a

premise; movement of animals onto a premise are some of the events. This

includes buying, selling, trips to the vet, going to breed or bringing in a stud,

trail rides, 4-H meetings, road trips, shows & travel on a public road.

How must we report? Events must be reported within 24 hours by

telephone or by computer via the Internet. There is no mail or paper option.

Why are they doing this? NAIS began as way to open up foreign meat

markets, like Japan, for the large beef exporters. Later the USDA changed the

stated justification for NAIS to be one of preventing disease. BSE (Mad Cow

Disease) is the primary excuse given by the USDA for NAIS. Other excuses are

Avian Bird Flu (H5N1), Exotic New Castles Disease and Foot & Mouth Disease

(FMD). Recently they have given the justification of tracing food back to the

farm in case of potential liability issues for food born illness.

Will NAIS prevent disease? No. In fact the government states quite

clearly in this document http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~comm/bsefaq.html that

no additional programs are needed. Bird flu is primarily a problem of the mono-

genetic factory farms - NAIS will have no effect. Biodiversity and natural pasture

raised birds who have better immunity are the solution. Exotic New Castles was

caused by illegally imported illegal fighting cocks - NAIS will not stop it - better

import controls are the solution. Foot & Mouth is not an issue in this country,

there is already a program to handle it and FMD is transmitted by dust in the air,

so NAIS will not help because NAIS tracks animal co-mingling. The reality is that

virtually all food contamination happens after the farm, when the animals are

slaughtered at the processing plant or later. NAIS does nothing for that. The best

protections would be for the USDA to do its job of properly inspecting

processing plants rather than making up complex and costly new regulations

that will be impossible to enforce. The USDA should enforce its ban on feeding

cows to cows which is the cause of Mad Cow Disease and enforce a strict

quarantine of imported animals - all under existing laws and regulations.

Can't I just hide my animals? Animal health providers, veterinarians,

service providers (police, butchers, gas, electric, telephone, etc) will be required

by law to report unregistered animal sightings to the government. Failure to

register your premise and animals or to report movements will result in non-

compliance fines of up to $1,000 per incident per day. Under NAIS the

government may enter your property without a warrant and confiscate,

redistribute or kill your animals without any form of legal appeal by you.

What is the cost of NAIS? The federal government is already spending

$50 million per year on NAIS, prior to implementation. States and animal

owners are expected to foot the bill for the vast majority of the cost. These costs

will be passed on to consumers. Studies show the real cost at over $15 billion

per year - a new tax on food. http://nonais.org/index.php/2006/02/19/

Is NAIS legal? It should not be. NAIS is clearly unconstitutional by violating

Amendments 1, 4, 5 and 14 of the United States Constitution. In 2001, after 9/11,

Congress gave the government enormous new powers in the form of the Patriot

Act which is up for renewal in 2006. Supporters of NAIS used this to draft a plan

for invasive micro-management of all animals in the United States. The Patriot

Act, PAWS, REAL ID and NAIS strip Americans of fundamental rights to life,

liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It gives the government the power to

invade our homes and take our property without warrants or any legal appeal.

How will NAIS affect small farmers? Annual Premise ID

registration fees, livestock registration fees and tag costs, tag applicator and

other equipment costs, potential enormous fines for incorrect report, failure to

track, increased liability, potential loss of all livestock due to faulty trace backs,

loss of biodiversity as heritage breeds become extinct. Small farmers,

homesteaders and hobbyists are the keepers of heritage breeds and the genetic

diversity that makes domestic livestock strong. In other countries that have

implemented systems like NAIS most small farmers were forced out of business.

Horse owners? Must report all movement of horses including trail rides,

parades shows, equiestrian events, riding on public roads and every entry and

exit from a property, within 24 hours. Reports include the 15 digit animal ID of

each horse plus the 7 digit premise ID of each property crossed on the ride.

Homesteaders? The same as small farmers but unable to pass the costs on

to customers effectively taxing us on the food we raise for ourselves at a cost of

about $500/year per family . You are no longer free - You are a serf of the state.

4-H, FFA & pet owners? Parents of children in 4-H, FFA and owners of

pet livestock will be treated as farmers, required to register their home for a

Premise ID with the associated annual fees, tag costs, filing fees, tracking of all

animal events and fines. Failure by a child to comply will result in fines.

Consumers? Consumers will see a loss of choice, smaller selection and

higher prices as farmers pass on the costs of NAIS and many farms go out of

business. They already operate on thin margins and can not handle the added

costs. This will concentrate control of our food supply into the hands of fewer

and fewer larger corporations who'll raise prices as they gain monopoly power.

Vegetarians & Gardeners? Virtually all of the animal manures used to

grow quality vegetables, especially organic ones, come from small farms.

Suiteable manure is already in short supply. You do not want to grow organic or

healthy vegetables in the contaminated septic output from factory farms with

their antibiotic, chemical wormers and arsenic laced feeds. As small farms are

lost, the price of manure will increase raising vegetable prices for everyone.

Big Agri-businesses? The big meat producers are the big winners. They

expect a surge in profits from meat exports to foreign markets. Maybe they'll get

it. Maybe not. Recently Japan reopened their market to American beef, after two

years of banning it, only to quickly reclose it after spinal tissue was discovered

in meat due to faulty processing at a slaughter house in the USA. This is not an

issue with farms, it is a processor error and NAIS will not help with that at all.

Terrorists? Terrorists will be delighted to have larger targets. They want a

high body count for their efforts. Hitting a small farm is not impressive and does

not affect very many people. A factory farm with 100,000 animals is a hot target!

What is the solution? NAIS should be strictly voluntary. Big meat

exporters can participate and they should pay the costs. The rest of us should

not be burdened with a system designed to provide profits to a tiny minority of

corporations. NAIS is an extraordinarily complex solution to a very

simple problem. The best way for consumers to know where their food comes

from is to buy it locally, from small farmers, keeping money in their local

economy and supporting area farms. See: http://www.slowfood.com/ and

http://localharvest.org and http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/

What can I do to help? Write your state and federal legislators about

NAIS. Write letters your local newspapers, talk to your friends and neighbors.

http://nonais.org/index.php/what-can-i-do-to-help/

Help spread the word about NAIS. Download this handout and pass it around:

http://nonais.org/sampleflyers/NoNAISHandout.pdf

Download this NoNAIS Poster and put it up on bulletin boards:

http://nonais.org/sampleflyers/NoNAISPoster.pdf

We the people of the United States of America need to renew our vows with the

Constitution to protect Americans from bad laws and regulations that would

strip us of our rights and freedoms. We must require that our politicians respect

the Constitution and all amendments when formulating laws so as not to steal

away our natural, God given, rights.

For more information visit:

http://NoNAIS.org

or send a large self-addressed stamped ($1.11) envelope to:

NoNAIS.org / Sugar Mountain Farm

West Topsham, Vermont 05086

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