New EID rules for cattle and bison: What you need to know

You’ve probably heard the buzz by now — starting November 5, 2024, the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will require electronic identification (EID) for certain cattle and bison moving interstate. If you transport livestock for competitions, sell cattle across state lines, or just manage a large herd, this new rule may affect you directly. This is a big change for many farmers and ranchers, so continue reading this post to understand the rules, avoid delays, and stay compliant as the deadline approaches.

Important date: November 5

Mark your calendar: this new requirement takes effect on November 5, 2024. The rule requires official eartags to be both visually and electronically readable for interstate movement of:

All sexually intact cattle and bison 18 months of age or older

All dairy cattle, cattle, and bison of any age used for rodeo or recreation events

Cattle or bison of any age used for shows or exhibitions

What is Electronic Identification (EID)?

There’s been some concern that Electronic Identification (EID) tags are an avenue for the government to track individuals or collect their personal information. But that’s not the case. An EID is a unique, electronically readable number assigned to one specific animal. When the tag is scanned, only that unique number appears — it doesn’t contain any personal details like your address or phone number. Any other information, like your contact details or the number of animals you’re bringing to an event, would have to be provided separately by you and stored in a different database.

For example, if you’re planning to attend the World Dairy Expo (WDE) and show your animals, WDE would collect your information during registration, including the EID numbers for each of your animals. When you arrive, a WDE employee scans the EID tag, and their system matches the scanned number with the information you provided earlier.

These changes are intended to help Tribal, State, and Federal officials, private veterinarians, and livestock producers respond more quickly to serious diseases in the U.S., as well as to foreign animal diseases that could threaten the cattle and bison industries.

Additional resources

To help you through this transition, here are some more helpful resources:

For assistance with the tagging process, check out this EID explanation guide and tag application guide from Allflex.

For more details on the USDA’s new requirements, visit the Federal Register on Electronic Identification Eartags.

For specifics on allowed identification devices and methods, including what to do if tags are lost or need to be replaced, see Code of Federal Regulations §86.4.