Duelling narratives on eID deadline

Key points

• The New South Wales Government says saleyards are driving strong uptake of electronic identification tags for sheep and goats. Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said the tags help trace livestock movements during disease threats.
• Farming groups NSW Farmers and WoolProducers are calling for a delay to the 1 January deadline. NSW Farmers wool committee chair Craig Mitchell said animals already identified should not need a second tag.
• WoolProducers Australia chief executive Jo Hall said the national database is not yet fully operational.