Travis Standley and Lisa Duffey use computers to keep track of results in a project to trace animals from the ranch to the packing plant. (Photo courtesy of John Paterson)

The country's first case of mad cow disease occurred in late 2003 and forced even non-producers to think about the pros and cons of a national animal identification plan.

The secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture responded to that Washington state event by saying that the nation's cattle producers would implement a verifiable animal tracking system in which animals could be traced to their original ranch within 48 hours. This national program is intended as a disease trace-back system.

Since that time, the Montana Department of Livestock received $400,000 for a new project to trace animals from the ranch to the packing plant. In cooperation with Montana State University scientists John Paterson and Rodney Kott, this project will build on work they've done over the past five years. This one-year project takes livestock from a variety of sources, identifies them through either hot iron brands, plastic ear tags or electronic identification tags and follows them through an assortment of production settings.

The USDA awarded 29 such grants around the country, said Paterson, MSU Extension Beef Specialist who is heading the MSU project. The venture involves several species, but cattle and sheep are the primary animals being tracked in the Montana project.

"The goal is to know within 48 hours where the cattle came from. We want to know every premise they have been," said Paterson who is focusing on the beef side of the project while MSU Extension Sheep Specialist Kott is concentrating on sheep.

Montana already has an animal identification program, and it's been recognized as a possible model for a national program, Paterson said. The Montana Beef Network and the Montana Stockgrowers Association started a cooperative tracing project in 1999 with the help of U.S. Sen. Conrad Burns, R-Mont.

The new project will allow Paterson and Kott to see how Montana's tracing system will work under a variety of settings. They want to document problems. They plan to gather more information about the electronic tags they use and how hot iron brands fit into a national program. They also wonder how the system will work across state lines.

"Very few lambs or calves spend their whole life in Montana," Kott said. "They will have to be put in with the South Dakota system or the Nebraska system or wherever they go."

For MSU's new project, Kott is tracing about 5,000 sheep that originated in Montana, South Dakota or North Dakota.

Paterson is looking at auctions, order buyers and a number of production systems that beef cattle might enter after birth. One scenario involves cattle that were born in Montana and sent to wheat pastures in Oklahoma., a feedlot in Iowa and finally a packing plant in Nebraska. Another potential scenario involves rodeo cattle that come from Mexico and compete in three or four rodeos in the United States.

"We have about nine different scenarios on beef steers we are going to track through this project," Paterson said.

Kott said MSU's project makes it more likely that Montanans will have a say in a national animal identification program.

"The reason that we are involved is so we are represented at decision time to argue that this program must be as convenient for our producers as possible to comply with the program regulations," he said. "If we are there, we can influence what happens."

Paterson said results of their work should be available around September and added that "A national animal ID system is needed to help protect American animal agriculture. This national plan, which identifies all food animals and livestock, enhances disease preparedness by allowing the U.S. to identify any animals exposed to disease and will facilitate stopping the spread of the disease. In addition, it will provide benefits to industry in terms of global market access and consumer demand."

Posted by Evelyn Boswell for 2/7/05