Animal Disease Traceability System - ADT

On August 9, 2011, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) issued a proposed rule on Animal Disease Traceability (ADT) to establish general regulations for improving the traceability of U.S. livestock moving interstate.

ADT – knowing where diseased and at-risk animals are, where they've been, and when – is very important to ensure a rapid response when animal disease events take place. An efficient and accurate ADT system helps reduce the number of animals involved in an investigation, reduces the time needed to respond, and decreases the cost to producers and the government.

USDA-APHIS is proposing to establish minimum national official identification and documentation requirements for the traceability of livestock moving interstate. Under this proposed rule, unless specifically exempted, livestock covered by this rulemaking moved interstate must be officially identified and accompanied by an interstate certificate of veterinary inspection (ICVI) or other documentation. The ICVI, or health certificate, identifies the animal's sender, receiver and official identification number. This information is then sent to the sending and receiving states, where the information is kept secure and confidential.

"Our proposal strives to meet the diverse needs of the animal agriculture industry and our state and tribal partners, while also helping us all reach our goal of increased animal disease traceability," said U.S. chief veterinary officer, Dr. John Clifford. "We believe reaching our goals on traceability will help save the industry and American taxpayer's money in the long term."

This interstate disease traceability system will be implemented transparently through federal regulations and the full rulemaking process. USDA-APHIS will be accepting comments on the proposed rule until December 9, 2011.

In anticipation of the USDA-APHIS ADT proposal, KDA's Division of Animal Health developed an ADT work group, comprised of Kansas livestock and agribusiness organizations with a vested interest in ADT and its implications for Kansas. Goals of the Kansas ADT work group include providing information about ADT to disseminate to livestock producers and agribusiness in Kansas, and developing a state-wide plan for the future of ADT in Kansas.

For more information about ADT visit  USDA-APHIS, Animal Disease Traceability.

 For more information about KDA's Division of Animal Health, visit Animal Health website or call (785) 296-2326.

Full text of the  USDA-APHIS proposed rule published in the Federal Register.