Sheep producers divided on eID tags at Dubbo sale

Producers and agents were not afraid to voice their opinions on the national mandatory sheep and goat identification scheme (eID).

Who will cover the costs and how will it be implemented were the most common questions. Some were concerned it would just be another job while others said it was a knee-jerk reaction to foot and mouth disease (FMD).

One farmer went as far as saying Agriculture Minister Dugald Saunders, who is the Dubbo MP, should know better.

"This bloke that is pushing it, the Ag Minister, he's from here and he should know better," the farmer said.

But those The Land spoke to were split right down the middle as to whether it should be mandatory in NSW. Ed Purseglove of Trangie put it simply: "if it helps, then yes, if not then why are they doing it?"

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Dubbo Stock and Station Agents Association president Martin Simmons said they knew it was "one of those things" that would come in eventually.

"We fought the good fight to keep it bay for six to seven years," Mr Simmons said.

"But speaking to Dugald Saunders about it...you have to give him credit he gave us the heads up and that it was due to FMD and his hands were tied."

Mr Simmons said the use of tags for traceability was the only way forward.

He said it would not happen overnight but instead it could be up to five years before it was implemented.

"NSW will have to get it right, when they bought it into Victoria they rushed it," Mr Simmons said.

On the other side of the fence, Keith and Gloria Donlan said the electronic tags were "ridiculous".

"It's adding more cost to the seller, if you are going to do something on FMD, it should be at a government level not at the growers," they said.

Howard Baxter of Wellington thinks they should throw the proposal in the bin.

"I understand there is a need for traceability but you can't compare NSW to Victoria," Mr Baxter said.

"Who is going to pay for it? How will it work on a day like today when you have to scan 25,000 sheep?"

Paul McAuliffe from Narromine also wanted to know who was going to pay for the tags?

"We will have to wear the costs, we are price takers not makers, you can't put an extra $1 on the price of the sheep because of the tags," Mr McAuliffe said.

Peter Miller from Geurie questioned how it was going to be managed?

"There are delays on traceability...the current system doesn't work on traceability," Mr Miller said.

John Hyland of Dubbo, who is an agent and producer, said it was a good management tool to record weights and drench but he did not know if the technology was "up to speed".

"If you miss one you have to go back through 500 to find it," he said.

Ken McDermott and Andrew Noble from Lawsonville both agreed the tags were a good idea for traceability. Binnaway's Tim Kemp said eID was just a side issue to FMD.

"They need to concentrate on FMD and stop changing the topic and talking about eID," Mr Kemp said.

Those that agreed it would benefit the industry was Tooraweenah's Damien Bonham and Emma Nixon from Dubbo, who said it was a good idea for traceability and disease control.

Scott Carney of Geurie says there is benefit for stud flocks but not commercial.

"Like cattle tags, some work and some don't so it's not full proof," he said.