Attachment_1_ SPECS PLASTIC EARTAGS.pdf

Attachment 1– Plastic Tag Specifications Page 1 of 3 2/09/2023

ATTACHMENT 1 - SPECIFICATIONS FOR TAMPER EVIDENT PLASTIC ALPHANUMERIC SERIAL EARTAGS

1. General:

The eartags shall be tamper evident and small enough and light enough for a sheep or goat of any age. Only tags approved by APHIS as official sheep and goat tags will be awarded. For tags that are not currently approved, an acceptable application for approval must be submitted before the closing date of the solicitation. The application must be clearly marked as a response to this solicitation and be emailed to traceability@usda.gov and copied to scrapie@usda.gov. Tag approval application instructions are available at Animal Disease Traceability (usda.gov). Contractors must also comply with the requirements for sheep and goat tag manufacturers in Title 9 Code of Federal Regulations part 79.2 (k). If an applicant is not already an approved sheep and goat tag manufacturer, they must sign an agreement with APHIS agreeing to comply with these requirements. If a tag is not already approved for use in sheep and goats or has not been approved to be produced with the required serial tag print format, 5 orange and 5 medium Slaughter Only blue tag samples printed as required for official serial tags (as described below) must be submitted for review to Melanie Rouse, Unit 43, 4B02.29, 4700 River Rd., Riverdale MD, 21737 to arrive before the closing date of the solicitation.

The Contractor shall agree to (a) only send official eartags to the address provided for the order in the Animal Identification Management System or a successor system or as directed in writing by APHIS; (b) when requested provide a monthly report of all tags produced and sent to a State including the tag sequences produced and the address to which the tags were shipped; (c) use only the letter and/or number sequences designated by APHIS on official tags; (d) use the Government shield only on official tags; (e) maintain the confidentiality of all information provided by APHIS or accessed through the APHIS website; and (f) report the total cost of the contract by month using order date within one week of the end of each month and by week when requested. Tag order information will be entered by the tag company through an APHIS web page into an APHIS database unless electronic messaging is mutually agreed to. The current web application is the Animal Identification Management System.

Preference may be given to tags for which successful long-term use in sheep and goats can be demonstrated or for which long term retention data demonstrating a high level of retention is provided.

If tags do not demonstrate adequate retention, legibility, and durability in field use, or if any of these requirements or the requirements to remain an approved scrapie program tag manufacturer or AIN manager are not met by the Contractor, the contract may be terminated.

Tags will be shipped to the addresses provided through the AIMS web page or as directed by APHIS as specified in the delivery order. The minimum delivery order will be 100 tags or 1 applicator. Tags must be shipped within 15 business days of receipt of the order in AIMS. Shipping method must on average result in delivery within 20 business days of receipt of the order in AIMS if the shipment is within the continental US. Information in AIMS must accurately reflect the tags shipped. Tags may not be shipped until they are shown as fulfilled in AIMS. Note: this process should be completed mailto:traceability@usda.gov mailto:scrapie@usda.gov https://www.aphis.usda.gov/traceability/downloads/adt-general-standards.pdf https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-9/chapter-I/subchapter-C/part-79/section-79.2#p-79.2(k)

Attachment 1– Plastic Tag Specifications Page 2 of 3 2/09/2023 before tag manufacture to validate that the numbers have not been previously issued. Any tag wastage occurring as a result of not following this guidance will not be compensated.

2. Plastic Specifications:

The plastic shall not break or crack upon closure of the eartag, when bent, or during the expected life of a sheep or goat. The regular serial tags shall be pure bright orange and slaughter only tags will be pure medium blue plastic. The color must remain distinguishable during the expected life of a sheep or goat. The tag shall not contain lead or other toxic substances.

3. Printing Specifications Alphanumeric Serial Tags:

The female part of two-part tags or either part of a one-part tag shall be imprinted with up to a 15-character unique alphanumeric serial number and be consecutively numbered starting with the serial number provided by APHIS for each state.

The numbers are unique numbers and shall not be duplicated. All characters shall be Arial or Helvetica bold or another font acceptable to APHIS. All characters are to be laser embedded into the plastic. All characters shall be readable from at least 30 inches, and the last 4 characters of a serial number shall be as large as possible given the size of the tag. The number may be printed on one or two lines. There shall be adequate separation between characters to ensure legibility. The lettering must be non-fading and resistant to alteration or removal. Slaughter only, medium blue tags, will be imprinted with the words “SLAUGHTER ONLY” or in the case of small tags “MEAT” on the male tag part.

On all tags, the letters U.S. shall be printed enclosed in the Government shield on the male and female tag parts of 2-part tags and on either part of one-piece tags and shall be imprinted in the largest size that will fit the tag.

Tags shall incorporate a unique copyrighted logo or trademark to identify the supplier. The logo or trademark may be printed or may be molded into the plastic.

4. Quality Control:

The contractor shall adhere to their quality control plan.

Upon request of the Government, the Contractor shall provide a monthly report that shows the number of quality checks performed, when they were performed, and identify tags that were reworked or rejected. Contractor will also maintain a record of product returned and all complaints regarding tags provided under the contract and provide a monthly report of all such complaints.

Contractor will also immediately report any misprinted tags or defective tags or applicators that were shipped and any incorrectly shipped tags.

6. Packaging Specifications:

Tags shall be packaged such that the male and female tags are linked or packaged together and the tag numbers maintained in sequential order. Both pieces of a two piece ear tag shall be

Attachment 1– Plastic Tag Specifications Page 3 of 3 2/09/2023 arranged/attached in such a way that the producer and/or animal health official knows that the male and female portion go together without having to check the tag numbers and can readily and quickly assemble and apply the tags sequentially to large or small groups of animals. Tag order must be maintained during normal handling; for example, tags packaged in trays must not fall out if the tray is inverted or dropped. The outer shipping boxes and individual containers of tags must be labeled and barcoded as required by APHIS to indicate the contract number, color of the tag, print format and number sequences in each container. The containers must be packaged sequentially in the shipping box with the lowest number on the top, upper, left corner of the shipping box and the highest number on the bottom, lowest, right corner.

Other options for organizing the tags within a shipping box may be proposed to better utilize the space while keeping the tag containers in sequential order.

The contractor must include tag use and application instructions provided by APHIS with each tag order.