This is a subscriber-only article
The new arrangement for the supply of cattle tags will come into effect from 1 November 2016, according to a Department document.
The Irish Farmers Journal has seen a draft of the new tagging tender and it includes a range of specifications a company must meet to get access to the contract. Some 2.3m new tags are issued to farmers annually.
The Department of Agriculture document, which is expected to be made public soon, sets out the specifications of tags to be approved for supply in Ireland, including conventional tags, electronic tags and tissue tags. It also sets out the specs for tag standards and tagging numbers.
Requirements
As well as confirming that there will no longer be a single supplier of tags, the tender also confirms that the companies must meet a series of requirements. The tags must be yellow, the characters must be 5.5mm in height and the tags must display the Department’s logo.
Suppliers wishing to tender must submit samples to the Department including conventional tags, electronic tags and boluses and tissue sample collection tags.
“The new proposed arrangement with effect from 1 November 2016 is to move to a tag approval system, where a suite of ear tags and suppliers, which meet minimum requirements, will be approved to supply ear tags in Ireland,” the document reads.
While the document does say it is a competitive tender, there is no confirmation of the pricing policy to be used.
The unit price charged per tag or tag set shall not disadvantage smaller producers
“An approved supplier is not permitted to set a minimum order for supply of new tag sets or replacement tags and the unit price charged per tag or tag set shall not disadvantage smaller producers,” it adds.
The previous single-supplier system used a fixed pricing system, whereby price was the same for all tags regardless of quantity bought.
As reported by the Irish Farmers Journal, certain farmers and farm organisations raised concerns that a multiple supplier system could lead to price deals for larger farmers buying a larger quantity of tags. This argument has been challenged by some suppliers, however.
It has been nearly a month since the Department announced that it was to abandon the single-supplier system and revert to the multiple-supplier system after a group of suppliers in the previous tendering process sought legal advice against the old system.
Mullinahone co-op has held the multi-million euro supply contract for 14 years.
IFA demands action
IFA animal health chair Bert Stewart said the IFA has written to the Department of Agriculture this week in relation to new cattle tag supplier arrangements, outlining that the Department must be able to guarantee farmers that the new system will deliver a tagging and identification system that meets all their requirements.
The robustness of the system is a critical component of our traceability system
He said: “The IFA has reiterated their strong view to the Department that the arrangements for the supply of tags and the identification of cattle in Ireland and the robustness of the system is a critical component of our traceability system. It is fundamental to maintaining and developing high-value markets for our produce and vital in the effective control and eradication of disease from our national herd.”
Listen to an interview with Kevin Kinsella, IFA director of livestock on the new cattle tag tender here:
SHARING OPTIONS: