Traceability is the main theme at the National Institute for Animal Agriculture ID/INFO EXPO in Kansas City this year and the recent outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in the UK has made it very timely.

One of the most interesting presentations was by Ray Brown, a dairy producer from Cheshire, England. Ray spoke on the impact of FMD from a producer’s perspective and how traceability is making a difference with this year’s outbreak of FMD compared to the devastating outbreak in 2001.

I interviewed Ray after his presentation and found him very interesting and forthright – plus he’s got that great British accent. It’s long (over 11 minutes), but really fascinating, especially for those of you in the livestock industry wrestling with the idea of animal ID and premises registration. Here’s why it’s important.
niaa-07-brown-interview.mp3

My purpose here at the EXPO is to send out media alerts to farm broadcasters and publications with links to photos and interviews from presenters. Here is a link to the Day One Virtual Media Room document from ID/INFO EXPO.

And, yeah – while Chuck is sweating in the heat at Farm Progress, I have the air-conditioned hotel gig. No complaints here.