National Animal Identification System can best be explained like this—what if I had an illness but forced you to take and pay for the meds, then I travel the world, declaring I am healthy. Makes no sense and benefits neither one of us.

NAIS (national animal ID system) is a USDA plan that every single livestock animal in the United States will be identified and tagged. All livestock animal movements will be tracked, logged and reported to the government.

The benefit is to the big factory farms who probably do need this type of regulation. They get to do single ID’s for large groups of animals. Small farmers, pet owners and homesteaders will have to tag and track every single animal.
NAIS will hurt a lot of different people including consumers, pet owners, children, homesteaders and small farmers.

Every owner of even one horse, cow, pig, goat, sheep,llama, chicken, or pigeon must register their premises for NAIS. Yes that`s right, doesn’t matter if it’s the family pet, your draft animal, or tomorrows dinner. They all have to be registered. Registering your premises tinkers with title to your property.

There are NO exceptions? They don’t care if your child is in 4H or not, if the animal is a family pet, or is you are raising a few animals for your own food and maybe a little extra to sell to your neighbors.

Even if you don’t own any livestock animals, you should. If you like buying from small farmers/homesteaders prepare to pay higher prices for the meat or eggs you buy.
NAIS, national animal id system, is a program that will put livestock owners under more govt surveillance than illegals, drug dealers or sex offenders.
NAIS- -is a business plan to benefit corporate agriculture on the global level. Tracking disease was added later to make it more acceptable.
Agri-biz gets ONE lot number per animal groups, (any one could be diseased; who would know) but the rest of us who own even one horse, cow, chicken goat pig, etc will have to microchip/track every animal we own individually and pay for it, giving corporate ag a free ride on our backs for the appearance of safe beef.
I understand the need to keep our food safe, but given that the USDA does not require the same standard for unhealthy germ-laden factory farms, and they will not even allow farmers who want to test their cows for BSE to do so, how can they make the claim that they care about food safety? Besides, how does me telling the govt everywhere I ride my horse ensure the Japanese are eating safe beef?!?!?!
NAIS tracking ends at slaughter. Most food safety issues occur AFTER that, during processing. There are already disease tracking protocols in place, and they work just fine. NAIS also prescribes depopulation of an entire 6 mi.radius (140 sq.mi.) should disease be suspected. See nonais.org for info on how NAIS will affect all who eat.

I think there’s a lot for Free Staters to learn from the Amish - we’re a lot like them in so many ways (and different in many other ways, too.)

The Amish would feel very at home in Grafton, although the winters are pretty harsh - but they could set up some great indoor greenhouses, I bet, for year round living. And they’d have ample help from FSP volunteers, if they wanted or needed it.