Cattle identification is important at every sector of the industry, with many options and varying permanence. In new technological advancements, Electronic identification (EID) tags are becoming more popular with different management programs as well as freeze branding.
Freeze Branding
Rains Simmental located in western Kansas near Oakley uses freeze brands on their red and black Simmental cattle. They brand cattle with both their ranch/ownership brand and the animals’ individual tattoo number.
“We do their individual tattoo number brand on their left hip and then our ownership brand right under it on the left hip as well,” explains McKellen Rains. “We try to brand everything.”
There are certain laws and protocols for branding in many western states where brand inspections are required for proof of ownership. Brands must be registered with the state and have different regulations in terms of locations and brand details. Other states, many in the Midwest and East, do not have brand inspection offices and do not require registration with the state.
“We’re looking to buy more spots on the left side,” Rains explains. “I’ve got three other brothers, so we’re looking to buy more spots on the left side and we can still use the same brand, but split up and have him on the shoulder, me on the ribs. That way, we don’t have to get another brand and stuff like that where we can just split it up and have the same ownership brand on the left side.”
Hot branding is also an option, with the same regulations in brand states. There are pros and cons to both brand forms, but Rains prefers freeze branding because of the eye appeal and legibility.
“It just looks better. It comes in white if done correctly,” he adds. “We prefer the freeze brand just because it comes back in white, just easier to read. There’s nothing wrong with the hot brand. It’s just easier to read with a freeze brand over a hot brand.”
Overall, Rains likes that the freeze brand is a permanent form of identification. Cattle can often tear an ear and lose a visual tag. Rains also likes being able to see the animal’s tattoo number from farther away.
“It seems like you can’t have enough identification anymore,” he says. “It makes it easier for me, and for older guys and stuff like that, they like it because a lot of them guys struggle with reading tags. Just the ease of being able to identify an animal a lot quicker, and it’s permanent.”
EID Tags
Electronic identification tags contain a unique, scannable microchip that replaces the manual entry of ID numbers when processing cattle. Instant identification of an animal with a scan allows data to sync with management software immediately when compared to handwritten or typed record-keeping.
Lukassen Cattle Co. in Nebraska began incorporating EID tags as traceability and data management became increasingly important for internal decision-making and external market access.
Between their two locations, they calve out around 1,000 Limousin and Angus-based cows.
“We emphasize practical management and long-term sustainability, developing cattle that work in commercial settings while maintaining maternal strength and feed efficiency,” Elyse Lukassen says. “A key part of our operation is delivering all-natural beef directly to consumers, offering true ranch-to-table beef with no added hormones.”
With the size and scope of their operation, using EID tags provides a more efficient and accurate management process.
“The transition to EID tags has supported our participation in value-added programs,” Lukassen says. “Programs like Non-Hormone Treated Cattle (NHTC) and Global Animal Partnership require detailed record-keeping and traceability, and electronic identification helps ensure compliance is both accurate and auditable.”
Like any new technology, there is an upfront investment, both in tags and in the necessary readers and software, Lukassen adds.
“There’s also a learning curve in implementing systems effectively,” she says.
They still use plastic visual-only tags for identification pen-side. Their registered cattle also are tattooed.
Jara Settles, Livestock Marketing Association (LMA) general counsel and vice president of risk mitigation, says large-scale beef and many dairy producers can find benefits in using EID tags in conjunction with management software.
“Scanners in a milking parlor, at the feeding area or integrated with a chute-side system can help them track production traits such as weights, pregnancy status, treatments, vaccinations, etc. This application of the EIDs allows the farmer or rancher to get the most value for those devices as the investment can be spread out over the entire productive life of the animal,” Settles says.
The downside of EID tags is usually cost-related as they’re significantly more expensive than visual-only tags. Settles says many producers do not have the technology necessary to read them or integrate them into their management system.
“From an auction market perspective, the application of EID tags to livestock for sale as mandated by the Animal Disease Traceability (ADT) program is an added cost to the consignor that does not realize any premium or added value,” she adds.
On May 9, 2024, USDA APHIS published into the Federal Register the Final Animal Disease Traceability Rule “Use of Electronic Identification Eartags as Official Identification in Cattle and Bison” making visually and electronically readable tags the only form of official identification for sexually intact cattle and bison 18 months of age and older, all rodeo, exhibition cattle and dairy cattle moving interstate. That rule became effective Nov. 5, 2024.
“The visual-only tags that were previously allowed under the Animal Disease Traceability program were very inexpensive to purchase and were usually provided free of cost to producers and auction markets by USDA. The transition from visual-only identification for animals currently covered by the ADT program to EID tags increased the cost per tag by as much as nine times,” Settles adds.
Since the transition to EID tags, LMA in coordination with several industry partners has sought funding for these EID tags so that this transition is not an unfunded mandate by the government.
“We have been appreciative of the hard work of livestock champions in D.C. who have ensured farmers, ranchers and livestock auction markets are not unfairly burdened by yet another expense they are unlikely to see benefit from in production. We hope to see continued appropriations of funds to pay for the EID tags for currently covered animals,” Settles says. “LMA would adamantly oppose any expansion of the ADT program to include cattle not currently covered by the program, commonly referred to as feeder cattle.”
