SHEEP producers in New South Wales have called for a two-year postponement to the rollout of a statewide electronic sheep tagging and tracking program.
Known as an eID, the program has covered cattle nationally since 2024 and aims to keep track of stock under a single record once it leaves the farmgate, through sales, and to slaughter.
NSW Farmers board director and sheep farmer Ian McColl said the industry was not ready for the 1 January 2027 implementation date.
“We are calling on the NSW Government to push the date back to January 2029,” he said.
“To date, NSW Farmers has provided in principle support for an individual traceability system, but only if certain conditions were met; that it’s affordable, workable, and backed by a fit-for-purpose NLIS database.
“However, there have been delays to the critical NLIS Uplift Project, and producers continue to express wide-ranging frustrations with the ISC delivery and transparency.
“If the NLIS database is not fit-for-purpose, then the eID system is not fit for implementation on 1 January 2027.”
The rollout of the eID program, which is also meant to extend to goats, has included a rebate program funded by the NSW government.
That scheme sought to provide up to 50 per of the cost of technology – capped at $1500 – for the system for farmers and stock agents.
Mr McColl said that wasn’t enough and producers were carrying more of the cost of implementing the program.
He also said he had “serious concerns about the integrity and accountability of key players in the supply chain.”
“Unless the NSW Government steps in, eID tags will be mandatory for all sheep and farmed goats in less than six months, and as input costs outstrip inflation, farmers are fighting an uphill battle to front up for the costs of this government mandate,” he said.
“The national eID reforms were intended to strengthen Australia’s traceability and biosecurity systems, but unless we see practical implementation settings and sustained investment for producers to transition to the new system, we have little confidence the current approach will deliver on that objective.
“Producers have been clear about the challenges that remain, and those concerns must be reflected in the implementation pathway.”