Farm-Scape, Episode 2054

The Canadian Livestock Identification Agency is preparing to circulate to its members, for feedback, three draft documents which outline the structure and operation of a proposed a national multispecies traceability system in Canada.

The Canadian Livestock Identification Agency is the umbrella organization which is coordinating the development of a national multispecies traceability system.

Its membership includes the participating commodity groups as well as various provincial and federal government agencies.

CLIA Vice Chair Dennis McKerracher says a draft strategic plan, a draft standards and performance target document and a draft memorandum of understanding will be sent out for feedback.

"The strategic plan outlines the activities and goals that need to be achieved, the platform for members to reach consensus on, the stakeholders and basically looking at the planning, the policy and the activities.

The standards and performance document contains some critical information. It serves to lay out the platform for what would be the minimum for traceability for all species in Canada.

It looks at premises identification and registration. It looks at how animals will be identified. It looks at reportable movements. It also gives a time line for implementation target dates, so when each species is expected to have traceability up and running in their commodity group.

The third document is basically an agreement of the roles and responsibilities of having a membership in the Canadian Livestock Identification Agency. It's an agreement to cooperate and to move forward putting traceability in place in Canada.

McKerracher says the intent is to receive all comments and suggestions by early April, in time for the agency's next scheduled meeting.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.