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Jul./Aug./Sept. 2004
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By: William Steel, National President
 CONVENTIONS - WHAT DO THEY MEAN?
As I write this, the nation is gearing up for the Democrat and Republican conventions in Boston and New York. My hope is that both get completed without terrorist interference.
There is also concern that what happened in Spain might happen here just prior to the general elections in November. We must be ever vigilant, ever looking ahead. Our peaceful way of life has been threatened. Does that mean we are maturing as a nation? That out days are numbered? Let us hope that we get through all of this without major difficulties.
Many of our State Granges are preparing for conventions also. A lot of work goes into such events, and we as members need to be supportive and attend. Not only do we set policy and elect leaders, we celebrate accomplishments at conventions. Please take the opportunity to be a part of your state convention.
Our national convention opens on Tuesday morning, November 9, in the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Rochester, NY. There are many new features in the schedule to make it more member friendly.
There's an organized luncheon every day, just in case you don't want to leave the hotel.
There will be a "free" afternoon on Thursday for the delegates so that they might enjoy a brief tour or shopping spree in the Rochester area. A tour company is also providing a number of organized tours for any interested parties.
Friday and Saturday morning are both filled with workshops for any and all interested members. And new this year is the Idea Fair - some thirty booths where you can pick up ideas for programs, talk with Grange leaders who have had successful events in their local communities, and study winning Community Service Reports. We'll also have the usual tables with Grange jewelry and clothing.
The "Evening of Excellence" on Friday will spotlight outstanding talent and youth.
The New York State Grange will confer the Sixth Degree on Saturday morning, and the National Grange Assembly of Demeter will present the Seventh Degree in the afternoon. We wind up the day Saturday with a Celebration Banquet and outstanding speaker.
Tickets for many of these events are required and need to be purchased prior to the first of November.
The "Highlights" brochure is in the mail. If you need more information, log onto the National Grange website, or give us a call at the office and we'll send you one.
Hope to see you in Rochester in November!
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| Watching History Live |
By: Richard Weiss
Chief Operating Officer, National Grange |
Say what you will about Washington, DC, but there is no denying it abounds with history. Within walking distance of the National Grange Building are the Smithsonian Museums and all the major monuments, including the new World War II monument. The nation's capital not only contains history, it makes history, history that impacts well beyond the District's ten square miles. Most of that history is made in the 16 blocks (mile and a half) between Capitol Hill and the White House. Such was the case with the procession bringing President Reagan's body to the Capitol to lie in state.
The schedule of events for Wednesday, June 9,called for President Reagan's body to be transferred from a hearse to a horse-drawn artillery caisson at approximately 6:00 p.m. The transfer was to take place directly behind the White House, the 1600 block, and then the procession would move east along Constitution Avenue to the Capitol.
It was a hot, muggy day in Washington, DC, 92 degrees and about an equal level of humidity. In spite of the Code Orange air, Summer Associate John Beazley and I decided we would go down and see what we could see. Shortly after 5:00 p.m., we headed down 15th Street towards Constitution Avenue and then went east on Constitution. Troops representing each branch of the armed services were already lined up and ready to start marching.
John, on twenty-year-old legs, decided to go all the way to the head of the procession. I, on the other hand, spied a good spot in the shade of a tree and dived in. I had a clear view of the street. What first impressed me was the mood of the crowd. This was not a somber, grim crowd. It was respectful, proud to pay homage to a man who, whether you agreed with his policies or not, had tremendous influence in shaping what the U.S. is today. There was definitely a feeling of camaraderie among us.
Directly in front of me was a Navy squad. Even though they were in white uniforms, the sailors were suffering from the heat. Suddenly a sailor went down and was carried to the side of the street for treatment. Water bottles were offered from the crowd. After about five minutes, the sailor got up and returned to the ranks. She received a rousing round of applause. Shortly after that, somebody bought a whole case of water from a street vendor and handed it over to the Naval officers. It was as if the crowd had adopted those fine young people occupying our little patch of Constitution Avenue.
Suddenly, orders were shouted, the troops came to attention and the procession began. A slow drumbeat set the pace for the troops as they started toward the Capitol. Navy, Air Force and other troops moved past my vantage point. Then came the beautiful black horses pulling the caisson with President Reagan's flag draped casket. The crowd was quiet, some with hands over hearts, others just watching, and still others with cameras overhead clicking away. According to the US Army's Military District of Washington, the caisson was built in 1918 and once carried 75 mm cannons. It is tradition that military leaders' caskets be carried on an artillery caissons, and, as Commander in Chief all presidents qualify.
Being lead behind the caisson was a black, riderless horse named Sgt. York. Its empty saddle carried President Reagan's riding boots reversed in the stirrups. The empty saddle signifies that the leader will never ride again and the boots reversed in the stirrups symbolize the leaders last look at his troops. This custom is said to date back to Roman times when military leaders' horses were buried with them.
For me, this view lasted a minute or so. I am sure that you watching on television at home saw much, much more than I saw, but I got to watch it live, an advantage to living and working in the nation's capital.
Remember, if you are planning on visiting Washington, DC to see the new memorial or view other sights, the National Grange Building is yours, and you are always welcome. Call ahead or just drop in off the street. We will give you a quick building tour and introduce you to the Washington staff.
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| The United States Animal Identification Plan |
By: John Beazley
Legislative Associate, National Grange |
 Since the outbreaks of Mad Cow and Bird Flu, producers and consumers have become increasingly concerned with animal health and the safety of our nation's food supply. Fortunately, the animal identification plan has been in the development stages since 2002 and is almost ready for implementation. The plan will provide a timely, phased-in, introduction of the national program with practical, flexible, and cost effective solutions.
The United States Animal Identification Plan (USAIP) is being developed by livestock and industry professionals who represent a host of associations, organizations, and government agencies. When fully operational, the National Animal Identification System (NAIS) will be capable of tracing an animal or group of animals back to the herd or premises that is the most logical source of a disease outbreak within 48 hours. This technology would have been invaluable during the Mad Cow investigation in Washington State in December 2003. It is possible that the quick trace abilities of the USAIP could have regionally isolated the disease and prevented trade disruptions with foreign nations such as Japan.
How will they do this?
Each location that an animal will visit, from birth to the supermarket (including the individual producer) will have a premises ID number, which will be stored in a state database. The state will report to a national database.
Using Radio Frequency Identification technology (RFID), a tag with a radio transmitter would be inserted in each cows ear to identify individual animals. The data would then be transmitted electronically to readers at production points, such as auction markets or packers, or a unique individual identification number on the tag could be read by a person.
By recording these two pieces of information, the premises ID and individual ID, every time the animal is relocated, the animal can be tracked around the country, allowing health and inspection agencies to track the animal's movements and find out what other animals it may have come into contact with. Imported animals will be subject to the same identification procedures.
Why is it taking so long to implement the plan?
The cost is the primary reason that it has not yet been implemented. The government, through the USDA, has only allocated $33 million of the $73 million needed in the first year to operationalize the system. The rest of the money must come from producers and industry. Table 1 gives a breakdown of the estimated costs.
In addition the tags in the RFID example will cost the producer about $2.00 to $4.00 each. This can add up on a producer if they have a large operation or are raising hogs. Cows only have one calf per year but a sow can have 22-24 offspring per year, and while a pig is typically sold for much less than a cow, this system will impose the same required identification costs. With this in mind the USDA is evaluating systems that include group or lot ID for species such as swine that are typically moved and marketed in groups.
The complexity of the system is also being evaluated. Given that the system will be required to track near 100 million animals with a high rate of data turnover - constant new inputs and deletes from the system - the USDA is evaluating several information technology systems to ensure that the database can handle the workload and will not become quickly outdated.
How will the information be used?
Information collected about the animal could include: the producer's name, address of the production facility, dates transported, and number of animals transported. The goal is to trace a disease to its point of origin and thereby track all animals that may have come into contact with the infected animal.
Currently under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), all of the information collected will be subject to disclosure. However, HR 4005, a bill before the 108th Congress to exempt all information collected under the animal identification plan from the FOIA, is an attempt to ease producers concerns about privacy invasion by keeping producers records from public disclosure.
Initially the system will be voluntary, those producers' with concerns of data privacy can choose not to participate. The USDA says it would ensure the confidentiality of data before moving to a mandatory system.
How does this system ensure food safety?
It does not. The USAIP is not a substitute for safety measures already in place, it is an added measure to protect the health of live animals by quickly detecting, isolating, and eliminating a foreign borne disease.
Consumers should continue to follow USDA guidelines to prepare foods. Safe food-handling procedures are imperative to the health of the consumer and the USAIP should not be mistaken for a solution to, or protection from food illness.
If a foreign borne disease does enter the food supply, the identification plan should be able to quickly identify the point of entry and officials will be able to take measures to resolve the issue.
Producers as well as processing plants are concerned about liability issues if a trace back indicates them as the point of origin. To what extent are they liable? Liability issues are currently under review, but as long as the rules have been followed - for example do not sell an animal without a tag and do not buy an animal without a tag - both the producer and the processor can ensure the traceability of their product.
How long will it take to implement the Plan?
Once the plan has been approved, the time line suggests it will take about three years to make the system fully operational. Each state will be responsible for data collection and reporting to the national repository, so implementation could vary depending on the states' workload, for example Texas has more cattle and producers to identify than Rhode Island. Table 2 gives the projected timeline.
What is the current status of the plan?
According to USDA officials, the plan is in the implementation phase. What this means is that the USDA will be evaluating the systems that it has already invested in, to see which systems can be scaled up and used for the premise allocator, as well as the national repository. A system is a specific technology or means of capturing the information into a central database.
Over the past several years the USDA has been funding a number of pilot projects on animal identification. Some are with specific producer groups, especially in the dairy industry. Some funds have been allocated to a particular type of technology such as Radio Frequency ID (RFID) or micro- chip. In addition there are a number of different technologies such as retinal scanning and DNA analysis.
At the end of the evaluation period, on or around June 15 the USDA anticipates being ready to award cooperative agreements to groups with the chosen systems.
Multiple systems could be chosen because agricultural systems vary in different parts of the country and also with species. For example, if RFID technology were chosen it would be more difficult to put an ear tag on a chicken than on a cow.
Table 1 Source: (USAIP) | Table 2 (Source : USAIP 16 April 2004)
How will this system be funded?
Currently the USDA has $18.8 million allocated from the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC). About $12 million will be used specifically for the cooperative agreements to move forward on specific systems, and a large portion will be used to evaluate the systems that have already enjoyed funding from USDA.
The President's 2005 budget allocates $33 million. This indicates the USDA's expectation that this will be a cooperative effort, and that the US government will not pay for the entire system.
More information
This is the most up to date information about the Animal Identification Plan, but more details and more information can be found as they become available at:
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