A REPORT recommending electronic identification of livestock has been welcomed by the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

The recommendations, put forward by an industry steering group, include electronic data transfer for cattle, sheep, pigs and goats, the development of a central database for sheep and electronic data transfer to reduce the paper burden on livestock farmers.

Listed as potential benefits are improved public and animal health protection and disease control, improved business efficiency, reduced red-tape burdens on the industry, verification of headage-based subsidy claims and increased consumer confidence in home and export markets.

However, the report advises that, although technology exists to support on-farm electronic identification systems, it may be some time before electronic readers are capable of coping with the range of animals at farms, markets and abattoirs.

Updated: 08:57 Thursday, July 04, 2002