By Wezi Tjaronda EPUKIRO The sale of ear tags amongst farmers defeats the whole purpose of animal traceability, Epukiro Councillor Brave Tjizera has said. The ear tags, a component of Farm Assured Namibia Meat (FanMeat), were introduced in February 2006 to enable animal traceability towards complying with demands for assurance amongst consumers worldwide. Since the ear-tagging system was introduced, livestock owners who have not applied for the tags cannot sell their animals. But being an area where cattle rustling is rampant, which is the biggest problem for the constituency, those with ear tags sell them to people who do not have them, compounding traceability, as these illegal ear tag owners are now able to sell their animals at auctions. The tags, which the farmers buy from Agra and Swavet for N$6.20 are being sold at an exorbitant N$100 each. “Some people with ear tags are making big business,” he told New Era recently. This malpractice, said Tjizera, will make it difficult to trace the animals. Consumers on the other hand want a holistic approach that satisfies production and marketing in every link in the production chain, from pasture to packaging. To try and control this, the constituency has formed a committee of people that verify ear tags and animal brands at all auctions. The work of the committee has already started bearing fruit following the arrest of 12 people since December 27 for attempting to sell livestock bearing ear tags registered in other people’s names. The cattle, according to the councillor, were stolen from Eiseb and Otjinene and were about to be sold at an auction in Epukiro. Realising that livestock are stolen from one constituency and sold in another, Tjizera said the three constituencies, Otjinene, Epukiro and Steinhausen, need to combine their efforts and curb the malpractice. Councillors of the three constituencies were scheduled to meet on Wednesday to discuss ways of putting an end to cattle rustling and the illegal sale of ear tags. The meeting was also supposed to discuss the possibility of establishing verification committees in other constituencies that do not have them. The livestock identification and traceability system was introduced in Khomas in October last year and has been in place in the whole country since February last year. Ear tags carry a computer code which matches the farmer’s livestock brand and a serial number that allows individual identification. Tags are required for all movements for which veterinary permits are required, which means that no animal may be moved unless clearly identified with an official ear tag. The system involves movement registers during which details of ear tags of animals are recorded on departure and arrival registers. When animals leave a holding, the veterinary movement permit should be accompanied by a page of the departure registers detailing the tags of the animals being moved.