Complimentary 840 Tags Available from Illinois Department of Agriculture
One of the most critical activities in an animal disease response is tracing the movement of animals. An efficient and accurate traceability system reduces the number of animals involved and response time required in a disease investigation, which in turn, reduces the economic impact on owners and affected communities.
As a result, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and state animal health officials in cooperation with industry developed the Animal Disease Traceability Program to ensure official individual animal identification and premises identification traceability from farm to harvest.
USDA APHIS Announces Final Animal Disease Traceability Rule
On April 26, 2024, USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) announced the final rule to increase and strengthen animal disease traceability (ADT) for certain cattle and bison.
The rule will take effect 180 days from publication in the Federal Register. The Illinois Department of Agriculture (IDOA) will provide an update with the final date, once published.
Key changes focus on the use of electronic identification (EID) as the official identification for all sexually intact cattle and bison 18 months of age and older, all dairy cattle of any age, and any cattle used for rodeo, recreation or exhibition moving interstate. This identification will be required to be read visually and electronically. Visual ear tags applied to an animal prior to the effective date of the rule will be recognized for the lifetime of that animal.
In addition, the rule will change the definition of dairy cattle to “All cattle, regardless of age or sex or current use, that are of a breed(s) or offspring of a breed used to produce milk or other dairy products for human consumption, including, but not limited to Ayrshire, Brown Swiss, Holstein, Jersey, Guernsey, Milking Shorthorn, and Red and Whites.”
Complimentary 840 Tags Available
To support this transition, IDOA Bureau of Animal Health and Welfare continues to offer free electronic 840 tags to cattle and bison producers and veterinarians for use in replacement cattle through an agreement with USDA.
Pick up from IDOA is available during regular office hours (Monday – Friday 8 am – 4:30 pm, excluding state and federal holidays. Please note that while the tags are provided at no charge, there is a flat rate of $30 for orders that require shipping (minimum order of 100 tags, up to 500).
Tags Required for Illinois State Fair & Du Quoin State Fair
The Illinois Department of Agriculture requires 840 tags for cattle and swine exhibited at the state fairs in Springfield and Du Quoin. It is the animal owner’s responsibility to ensure the necessary veterinary inspections and 840 tags in advance of arriving on the fairgrounds. A cattle or swine exhibitor arriving with an animal(s) without an 840 tag is responsible for contacting the fairgrounds veterinary provider. The provider will meet the exhibitor and assess the animal, provide a Certificate of Veterinary Inspection and install an 840 tag at the owner’s expense. Exhibitors should not rely on a veterinary provider being available on site to meet this requirement. Swine and cattle that do not have an 840 tag upon arrival and/or do not obtain a tag on site must be removed from the fairgrounds. If you have specific questions, please contact the Bureau of Animal Health and Welfare by email at agr.bahw@illinois.gov or by phone at 217.782.4944.
Premises Identification
Premises Identification involves assigning a unique number to premises involved in animal agriculture. Allied agricultural operations and non-producer participants can also be assigned Premises Identification Numbers. Information utilized to register a premises will be maintained by IDOA and is protected. During an animal health emergency, key pieces will be shared with the USDA for animal disease tracing purposes. Premises Identification is voluntary at this time and is offered at no cost to the producer.
Registering your premises is free and easy. Download and complete the Registration Form and return it to us by email, fax or mail. Once registration is complete, you will receive a premises identification number (PIN) certificate via mail or email.
Should your premises identification information change, please either fill out a new form and check “Update” at the top of the page or call 217-782-4944. If you don’t know your PIN, our team can look it up by the address or your contact information.
Have more questions? Read our FAQ to learn more. Our Illinois industry partners have also compiled basic information here.
For questions about animal disease traceability, please contact us:
Illinois Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Animal Health and Welfare
P.O. Box 19281
Springfield, Illinois 62794-9281
Telephone: 217/782-4944
Fax: 217/558-6033
Email: agr.premises@illinois.gov
***Courtesy of the United States Department of Agriculture***
