WESTERN Australia is yet to settle on a set date for all sheep and goats to have electronic identification ear tags as it moves to a mandatory EID system for small stock.

Last week the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development announced that WA sheep and goat producers will get a retail discount of 75 cents on accredited EID tags for 2023-drop lambs and kids.

The discounted tags are being provided as part of a pilot Tag Incentive Program that will run until the end of June this year. There is no restriction in the number of discounted tags a producer can purchase and they are being provided on a first-in-first-serve basis. Any unused tags from 2023 will have to be held over for eight years, according to the WA year of birth colour rotation, DPIRD said.

The department has also provided further details around the requirement to have all sheep and goats moving off property, including those going direct to slaughter, tagged with EID from 1 January 2025.

A DPIRD spokesperson said all sheep and goats need to be compliant with the National Livestock Identification System requirements.

“Farmers with sheep that already have visual tags will also need EID tags if they are moving off property or to sale from 1 January 2025.”

The DPIRD spokesperson said visual tags on older sheep remain important and must not be removed.

“Existing homebred stock with visual tags will need a yellow EID tag fitted prior to moving off property.

“Existing brought in sheep with only visual tags will need a pink EID fitted prior to moving off property,” the spokesperson said.

“Existing sheep with an accredited EID currently used for management will not have to replace them with yellow eID, as long as there is the visual year of birth tag present.

“Existing sheep with an existing non-accredited EID tag will have to have them removed and replaced with the appropriate yellow EID or pink EID.”

The spokesperson said there is no requirement for farmers to remove a visual year of birth tag from animals when marking them with a pink or yellow EID tag.

“All EID tags need to be accredited for use with the NLIS.”

The spokesperson said the Tag Incentive Program pilot was endorsed by the WA Sheep and Goat NLIS Advisory Group, that includes representatives from WAFarmers, the Pastoralists and Graziers Association of WA and other key industry bodies.

“The WA Sheep and Goat NLIS Advisory Group and the WA Government will consider the merits of the proposed national tag tender program, as more detail comes to light,” the spokesperson said.