Farm tracking will prevent diseases
MIDDLEBORO — While local farmers object to the cost of the program, state officials say the pending federal tracking system for farms is meant to prevent the outbreak of disease.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture will soon require the state to turn over information on all registered farms, unless farmers lodge a complaint with Department of Agriculture Resources.
Michael A. Cahill, coordinator of the Bureau of Animal Health for the Department of Agricultural Resources, said mad cow disease is already in the United States. The disease has been found in animals three times since 2003, and the USDA has spent $85 million on the National Animal Identification System to prevent the disease from spreading.
