Mandatory bovine electronic identification (EID) of cattle comes in to play in its full format on 1 July 2022.

From this date, all newborn calves will be required to possess an electronic tag. There have been some queries of late regarding what will happen to supplies of conventional tags which will not be used by that date.

The Department of Agriculture ruling states that any non-EID tags which are not used by 30 June 2022 will become null and void on 1 July 2022.

Tag suppliers report they are receiving some queries from farmers asking if surplus supplies of non-EID tags can be upgraded to EID status after 30 June, by ordering a corresponding electronic tag.

The tag approval process does not facilitate such a request, as replacement tags can only be ordered for animals which have their birth registered on the Department’s Animal Identification and Movements (AIM) database.

The introduction of mandatory EID tags is taking place in a two-step process.

Since 1 January 2022, tag suppliers have only been permitted to supply new EID tag sets to producers. Farmers still have the option of applying conventional tags to newborn calves up until 30 June 2022, when at this stage, the second and final step will kick in.

Tag subsidy

A Department of Agriculture-funded subsidy has been in place since 1 January 2022, with payment set at a rate of €1 per set of EID tags ordered.

Payment is capped at €100 per farmer or on 100 tags, with the scheme set to run for three years to provide the opportunity for smaller herds to obtain more support.

This is because the tag threshold will limit the number of new tags a producer can order in a year. The threshold is based on the average number of calves born in the previous three years, plus an allowance to take account of a possible small increase in numbers.

The tag threshold can be easily accessed through the Department of Agriculture agfood facility, while some tag companies also have a link to this facility on their websites.

Farmers who wish to increase their threshold on the back of an increase in births in the coming season can notify the Department to do so.

No application process is required and payments will take place as part of a tranche system, with the first payment expected to take place in quarter four of 2022.

The maximum level of payment a farmer can receive in any one year is influenced by the number of breeding females in the herd and is already governed by the tag threshold system introduced on 22 July 2020 to comply with EU legislation.