Australia: EID sheep and goat tag subsidy for NSW ruled out at Broken Hill meeting

Published Feb 22, 2023

Tridge summary

The New South Wales Government has decided against providing subsidies for electronic tags for sheep and goats, instead backing a national tag tender to reduce costs during the mandatory Electronic Identification (EID) rollout. This approach is aimed at minimizing the financial burden on producers, with the saleyards bearing the upfront costs and producers incurring the majority of the long-term costs. The government is cautious about subsidies, citing potential economic distortions and wanting to avoid unintended consequences. They are exploring other ways to support producers, such as funding for other infrastructure, but more details on this are pending.

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Original content

NEW South Wales Government officials have ruled out an electronic tag subsidy for sheep goats, instead backing a national tag tender to minimize costs in a mandatory EID rollout. At the recent Broken Hill EID information session, NSW Department of Primary Industries group director livestock systems Dougal Gordon said the biggest upfront costs of a mandatory system would be met by saleyards, but the greatest costs over time would be borne by producers. He said the initial government position at this stage is not supportive of subsidies. “Subsidies like quotas, they’re quite distortionary in their impact and can lead to unintended consequences – that’s the fundamental economic position.” He conceded that Victoria had subsidies in position for EID ear tags. “That’s funded by producers; however, through a levy and so when do you stop that levy, when do you actually stop that subsidy, there is a whole range of complications associated with that. “So we are supportive of a national tag ...

Source: Sheepcentral