NAIT advocates have a huge task to persuade farmers the animal tracing scheme is needed, judging by comments to Rural News’ at last week’s Southern Field Days.

“An unnecessary cost” was how most described it, and while there are “some positive aspects” only one farmer in eight was fully in favour.

Otama Valley sheep farmer Darren Wing’s view was typical: “I’m not a big fan. I don’t think there’s going to be much benefit, just extra cost.”

And while cattle and deer are the initial species, he believes once they are in the scheme “it won’t be long before they push it on to sheep”.

Beef farmer Craig Wilton, Otaio, South Canterbury, says he can see New Zealand will need a traceability system that falls in line with other countries’ long-term, but questions the timing, return and implementation method.

“I wonder whether they are taking the right options… They’ve gone with low frequency [radio scanning] which is stupid. They should go with the right up to date stuff.”

Sheep and beef farmer Alastair Evans, Athol, says it is “not so much an unnecessary cost as another cost.

“We don’t need that cost right now.”

But if it is implemented, it is better that it is compulsory. “The industry has got to go forward as one on this.”

Prevention or detection of stock theft would be a positive, he adds.

Dairy farmer Simon Bramer, Morris Bush, is unambiguously in the “unnecessary cost” camp, challenging both biosecurity and market access justifications.

“It achieves nothing. It’s just bank rolling these people.”

Others are similarly strident.

“I think it’s a waste of time,” says Alistair Price, Arthurton. “It’s not going to contribute to production, just cost. Most tags will be put in the sheep’s ear the day before they die. Where’s the value in that?”

Only dairy farmer Lance Constantine, a sharemilker with 640 cows at Mokotua, was fully in favour.

“I think it’s absolutely brilliant from a selling point of view. Foreigners like to know where their meat is coming from.”

Alliance CEO Grant Cuff says that at the moment all most farmers see with NAIT is the extra $2 to $3 cost of the tag.

“It is necessary. In the end it will come down to Europe’s requirements of their farmers and our requirement in New Zealand to have equivalence. If we don’t have that the EU farmers will put pressure on their Governments to only allow access for product from countries with equivalent systems.”

RFID tags wouldn’t increase the processors’ ability to relay carcase information to producers, but they would enable faster recovery following a major disease outbreak than current paper systems, he says.