The Canadian Cattlemen's Association

It is strongly recommended that participating producers acquire an official Premise ID from the CLTS or through their provincial traceability program.

Additional data and information producers may wish to include on their animals, and share and include for searching functions publicly, is strictly optional.

4. As a feedlot operator/owner - what information do I have to submit?

Feedlots wishing to become members in BIXS are required to submit:

The RFID/CCIA tag numbers of BIXS cattle entering their feedlot
The in-date of those BIXS cattle entering the feedlot
The in-weight of the BIXS cattle entering the feedlot
Whether the feedlot is a Verified Beef Production operation
The animal’s 1 to 5 health score upon Move-out (see feedlot section)

It is strongly recommended that participating producers acquire an official Premise ID from the CLTS or through their provincial traceability program. 

It is highly recommended that if you are a feedlot operator who will be enrolling in BIXS at a later date to start collecting and storing the required individual animal data upon the animals entering the feedlot and at move-out and linking the data to the individual animal’s RFID/CCIA tag identifier.

5. As a packer/processor - what information do I have to submit?

Packers/processors, as members of BIXS, are required to submit:

Their premise ID
Animal’s RFID/CCIA tag number
Slaughter date
Hot carcass weight
Quality grade
Yield grade
Grade fat measures

As a packer/processor, you have a variety of optional additional information you can choose to enter - including electronic carcass data and actual yield percentage.

6. What are the computer requirements for me to access BIXS and start my registration process?

BIXS will function for those systems with at least 256 megs RAM utilizing XP, Vista Operating Systems, or Windows 7 and Internet Explorer 7.0 and 8.0 as well as the newest Firefox browser versions. Other browsers such as Explorer 6.0 and the newest versions of Google Chrome and Safari may work but are not officially supported at this time.

BIXS anticipates support for Internet Explorer 9.0 when released later this year. BIXS will provide further information as it becomes available.

Testing is underway for the Mac Operating System using the Safari web browser. Testing results to date have not revealed any issues but users should be aware that use of Mac is not officially supported at this time. BIXS will provide further updates for Mac users as they become available.

At a minimum, a dial-up connection that allows you to connect to the Internet via a local server using a standard 56k modem will be required to access the BIXS system. However, a high speed internet connection is highly recommended when accessing BIXS to take advantage of all the features. If you have a high-speed Internet connection you can access the BIXS portal directly via the BIXS website.

7. Is it complicated to upload data and access the BIXS program?

The BIXS program is designed to be as simple, quick and easy to use as possible, but does require access to the Internet and a basic understanding of the websites. You can apply to BIXS to have another person, company or organization enter your information into BIXS on your behalf.

8. Can I participate if my farm Internet connection is dial-up?

Yes, the BIXS program will be designed to accommodate low band width (dial-up) connections but with a caveat. If your dial-up connection is slow or intermittent, access to BIXS may be problematic. User feedback will be evaluated but at this time it’s felt that a minimum dial-up connection rate of 56.6 baud uninterrupted will be the baseline. If you are on dial-up and access is problematic then accessing through a third party may be the best approach. 

9. As a high-speed internet user, do I need to do anything special to access BIXS?

No – if you have a high-speed Internet connection you can access the BIXS portal directly via the BIXS website (see register/login manager right side of Home page).

10. Can I age verify my cattle through BIXS?

Yes. When you enter your animal’s birth date information into BIXS, BIXS automatically forwards this information to your CCIA account. After entry of the birthdate information into BIXS you can log into your CCIA account and see your animal birth date information and print off a birth certificate.

11. How is required information exchanged between BIXS and CCIA?

BIXS strives to be a one-stop data exchange tool for its participants. As such, and according to the Terms and Conditions, BIXS will upload certain information required under the Health of Animals Regulations and relevant provincial legislation to the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) Canadian Livestock Tracking System (CLTS) on behalf of registered participants as a third party. This data includes Herd of Origin information, birthdate information on individual animals and tag retirement information. If participants register CCIA tags in BIXS and if data pertaining these tags has already been entered into their CCIA account, namely date of birth, date of birth method, colour, species, sex, breed/cross, account ID, then BIXS will extract this data.

For instance, when a cow-calf producer registers and logs into BIXS and conducts the required ‘Birthdate Event’ BIXS will upload the producer’s animal birthdates to CCIA after validating the producer’s CCIA account number. If the producer has already age verified their animals with CCIA a notification would come back indicating these animal’s birthdates are already in the producer’s CCIA account. At present the validation of birthdates via BIXS to CCIA can take at least 4 hours for CCIA to process the request and populate the producer’s account. Please keep this in mind when considering marketing plans. And at this time BIXS is not offering a birth certificate production service. If producers wish to obtain birth certificates BIXS provides a direct link to CCIA as a courtesy. It is up to the producer participant to contact CCIA to obtain their birth certificates.

12. Do I need a premise ID to participate in BIXS?

At present you do not need a premise ID (PID) to participate in BIXS. However, it is strongly recommended that BIXS participants obtain a PID to fully capitalize on the value chain benefits of BIXS. BIXS accommodates all provincial PID programs as well as the CLTS program. To obtain a CLTS premise ID click here or contact your provincial government if you want a regional PID. The BIXS system assigns all participants a GLN (Global Location Number) as per the Terms and Conditions and Personal Information Protection Policy as a free service to BIXS participants, which may permit BIXS to assist participants in the future and for the participant’s own personal use.

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Security/Privacy/Technical Help

13. Who built and manages BIXS?

The Canadian Cattlemen’s Association oversees the design and operation of BIXS. The CCA has contracted the IT firm FoodLogiQ Canada to develop and deliver the BIXS program under the Canadian Beef Advantage (CBA).

14. Is my data secure?

Yes. Confidentiality and security is paramount to BIXS. Also, BIXS participant’s control how their optional data is shared among BIXS registered participants.

15. Where is the database housed?

The database is housed in Alberta, Canada.

16. Who has access to the data housed within the database?

Authorized users via the security model in BIXS will have access to the database. FoodLogiQ Canada support staff will also have access to the database to help maintain the system.

17. Who oversees the security of the BIXS program, ensuring privacy, preventing abuse and providing technical support?

The Program Administrator will have the ability and responsibility for all functions of the BIXS program as they relate to program registration, access, security, searches, member communications, data analysis and reporting.

The Program Administrator is legally bound to confidentiality through an agreement with CCA.

To participate, BIXS users must agree to conditions associated with the absolute authority of the Program Administrator.

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Benefits of participating in the BIXS program

18. Will I automatically get a premium for my cattle if I enroll in BIXS?

Not necessarily. The main purpose of BIXS is to create a means whereby individual animal and carcass performance, health, genetic and other information can be captured, uploaded and exchanged across the beef chain according to the animal’s CCIA tag number.

BIXS enables better communication between the cow-calf, feedlot and packing sectors on an individual animal basis and offers a way for producers to develop business relationships. As those business relationships form, premiums may indeed come. The query function built into BIXS will spur the development of these business relationships and may well pave the way to premiums being paid for animals meeting a certain spec BIXS member feedlots, buyers or packer/processors are seeking.

But at the beginning, the value in BIXS is in the sharing of specific data and information on individual animals and their carcasses up and down the chain.

19. How can I use the individual animal and carcass data I get back?

A vast amount of the individual animal/carcass data and information you get back through BIXS can be scrutinized to identify opportunities or shortcomings in cow-calf and feedlot management, performance and profitability, which can help assess and possibly make culling decisions make production and management decisions on trends identified. Beef software and IT companies, some of which are partnered with BIXS, can take the analysis much deeper and evaluate trends and possibilities that may otherwise be missed were the data not captured and exchanged via BIXS. BIXS is also in a gate-to-plate pilot study to see if a system linking retail cuts back to cow-calf source, sire/dam, can be developed. If so, this presents a huge potential for cow-calf producers to make profitable breeding decisions with confidence based on solid retail market signals.

20. How are my cattle and carcass data shared?

The member submitting data and information dictates how it will be shared.

The primary business rule of BIXS states that anyone who registers an animal’s CCIA tag number to their BIXS account number and enacts an event on that tag number has access to the basic required information as well as any optional information other member participants have submitted and agreed to share on that specific animal.

Some participants may choose not to share their optional data, but, instead, share the data once business relationships develop, or share it as a means to foster those relationships. Anyway you cut it the decision is the participant’s.

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Benefits of uploading optional production and management information

21. Why would I choose to upload optional production and management information on my cattle?

It enables you to add further description of your cattle to potential buyers, differentiating unique aspects of your animals featuring specific information on your cattle, breeding program, animal health protocols, management, feedlot performance and much more. In time, the negotiated settlement of cattle trade up and down the chain is based on good hard data on performance, health, genetics, carcass quality and more.

Capturing and uploading optional data enables this information to be showcased as well as tracked and reported on by BIXS.

Accurate descriptors of your cattle will be essential, as this provides potential buyers with information that will help them determine how to feed or use your cattle to the best advantage.

According to the data sharing conditions members consent to, uploading optional data enables packers, feedlots and buyers up the chain to connect to your cow-calf or feedlot animals that fit a specification they require to access a target market.

22. Am I obliged to contact a person or company if I’m notified that some or all of my cattle meet the query criteria of a feedlot, packer or buyer within BIXS?

No - the decision whether to make contact with a BIXS participant who has launched a query through the Program Administrator is solely up to you. However, you can decide to release contact information for release to participants via reports to those who register your animal’s CCIA tag number to their BIXS account under the primary business rule of BIXS.

You will be provided with the contact information of the searcher and it’s up to you as to if you respond to that query.

The query launchers will not be informed of the outcome of a query nor the contact information of any BIXS participants the PA has identified through a database query report. Confidentiality of the cow-calf BIXS member participant is maintained.

23. Why would I want to contact a searcher when I’m notified that my cattle match the search criteria of a potential feedlot, packer or buyer?

The primary reason to make contact with a query launcher would be to initiate the sale of your cattle or sourcing animals that match their requirements. Business relationships develop over time and often lead to improved information flow-back and potentially bolstered prices for certain cattle characteristics.

In time, trust builds between suppliers and buyers, which enable them to more effectively find the cattle that work for them and perhaps modify their programs to fit certain demand.

Most importantly for the long term is knowing where your cattle are fed, how they performed and graded and this enables you to make changes to improve profitability at the farm and/or feedlot segments.

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Additional advantages of participating in BIXS

24. Will the CCA and BIXS run analyses on the data I submit to the BIXS database?

BIXS will provide a limited and basic amount of data reporting and benchmarking for member participants. BIXS encourages producers and feedlots to tap the expertise of existing IT firms who offer a much broader range of data analyses options for interpretation of data provided through BIXS. Some of these companies will partner with BIXS.

25. How will the reports BIXS generates on my cattle and the overall BIXS population data help my operation?

The reports provided by BIXS will have the ability to highlight obvious problems or advantages. These include analyses of the top 10 and bottom 10 per cent of your herd against the general BIXS population for such variables as average daily gain in the feedlot; weaning weights; quality and yield grades.

The program will also provide a comparative analysis on variables like animal health score in the feedlot. The information provided back could enable more strategic breeding and management practices.

26. Will the BIXS program be validated for data integrity?

Yes - initially BIXS will conduct limited internal validation (audit) functions that will evolve over a short time period to a more robust standardized process. The system will have error checks built into it and the program administrator will have access to validate data that is out-of-range, or may appear as a data-entry error or statistical anomaly.

BIXS founding members are the Canadian Cattlemen's Association and the Canadian Beef Breeds Council.