Northern Irish farmers are being told not to overbuy 'UK' livestock tags as the prefix code in the province is set to change to 'XI'.
The new tags will be available to purchase later this year, Northern Ireland's Department of Agriculture (DAERA) has announced.
The department said it was finalising plans for the January 2025 implementation of the XI tags, which will replace UK tags.
Livestock identification in Great Britain remains unchanged, with the ‘UK’ prefix still being used.
According to DAERA, the change is a legal requirement under EU animal health law and is necessary to allow NI unfettered access to the EU market.
The Ulster Farmers' Union (UFU) said the news had 'come out of the blue' without consultation with the industry.
UFU deputy president, John McLenaghan said: “This access to the EU single market is essential. We do, however, seek more clarity on the process of how the prefix was selected.
"It is critical that when using these new XI tags, that we still have access to premium markets in GB and our product can still be labelled as UK origin beef."
There is no guarantee that UK livestock tags can be used from 1 January 2025, with the UFU urging farmers not to overbuy UK tags due to the uncertainty.
Mr McLenaghan said this lack of assurance had the potential to cause issues for a lot of farmers as many were already spring calving and have purchased UK tags.
"The UFU has already raised concerns with DAERA about the lack of consultation and that sufficient lead time needs to be given so our members can use up all the UK tags that they have already bought.”
