The Canadian Cattlemen's Association

January 11, 2010 - Feedlots set to join BIXS this year should collect and store required data as cattle enter the lot

Through the initial and on-going testing and early launch period of BIXS (Beef InfoXchange System), cattle from cow-calf operations that have yet to join will be gone from the farm or ranch through the fall run and into winter. These cow-calf producers will join BIXS and enter their required and optional data as the program gets up to full speed in early 2010. Obviously, not all cattle coming to feedlots will, ultimately, be BIXS program animals. But chances are a good number will be and if the required information upon feedlot entry is not collected, a significant step in the process is missed. This will not be a concern later as BIXS evolves and participation across the beef chain builds, but for now it is a reality of starting a new program.

With this in mind it is strongly urged that feedlots record the CCIA tag numbers of all cattle entering their feedlots and link the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency’s (CCIA) tag identifier to the In-Date (DD/MM/YYYY) and In-Weight (in pounds) of the cattle. Store this information for future upload to the BIXS database once the program is fully launched and your feedlot operation is registered onto BIXS.

While there is no fee to participate, there is a minimal amount of required information participants must submit. For feedlots, the required information includes:

• CLTS Premise ID
• date cattle enter the feedlot
• weight of the cattle when they entered the feedlot
• CCIA tag number of each individual animal

BIXS is in the beginning of the next and likely final stage of cow-calf producer testing. The target is still to move to the full launch to cow-calf and feedlot operators across Canada in early 2010.

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