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Collaboration Strong at Joint Strategy Forum on Animal Disease Traceability

The Joint Strategy Forum on Animal Disease Traceability co-hosted by United States Animal Health Association and the National Institute for Animal Agriculture in Denver, Colo., on Aug. 30-31, brought together 193 individuals representing 43 states, four tribes, 33 state animal health agencies, 38 industry organizations, eight universities and 34 producers and supply companies. Breakout participation during the Forum showed that 85 percent of Forum participants were interested in cattle traceability while the remaining 15 percent interested in traceabilty as it relates to swine, sheep and goats, equine, poultry and exotic species. Countries repesented included the United States, Canada, Mexcio and Japan.

The remarks and input of the attendees were then synthesized into a White Paper given to USDA and the agency’s Traceability Regulation Working Group to provide input as it drafts a proposed rule on animal disease traceability projected to be published by April 2011.

Although USDA had conducted several public meetings regarding the agency’s new framework for animal disease traceability in the United States that was announed in February of this year, the Denver strategy meeting was the only gathering directed by the industry and state/tribal animal health officials and worked from an agenda developed to elicit concerns, and questions and propose viable solutions. The Forum focused on the preliminary directions that the USDA’s Traceability Regulation Working Group are suggesting in regards to official identification, exemptions, performance standards, compliance components, recordkeeping requirements and proposed timelines.

A preliminary prioritization exercise performed by Forum attendees revealed four area of greatest interest and concern related to the new traceability framework: 1) recordkeeping requirements of official identification; 2) proposed official identification to be allowed for interstate movement; 3) traceability performance standards; and 4) compliance components. Specific interest in these four areas related to feeder cattle as well as enforcement of the program.

At the beginning of the Forum, Dr. Richard Breitmeyer, California’s state veterinarian and the current president of USAHA, stated, “This Forum will allow for the open flow of ideas and concerns among those producing animals, State and Tribal officials responsible for protecting the health of animals in their areas and USDA. Unless we have a discussion including all parties, the development of a viable animal disease traceability framework will be much more difficult.”

This “open flow of ideas and concerns” occurred, and the Joint Strategy Forum achieved its goal of creating an environment in which industry participants, state animal health officials, tribal animal health officials and representatives from the Veterinary Services area of USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service openly discussed the issues and potential solutions to help further develop robust animal disease traceability in the United States.

“At the conclusion of the Forum, industry and the States and Tribes had voiced their positions and progress was made,” stated Dr. Michael Coe, co-chair of the conference.


Source: The National Institute for Animal Agriculture


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