Get your form-filling right, pleads BCMS

By FWi staff

FRESH guidance to cattle producers was issued today to help them get the best out of the new Cattle Tracking System.

The scheme, which is being operated by the British Cattle Movement Service (BCMS), has produced half a million passports since starting operations, said head of the BCMS, David Evans.

“Most farmers do fill in their forms properly. However, a small number of forms are not filled in correctly and cause problems,” he said.

The advice given by Mr Evans was that producers should use black ink and differentiate clearly between letters and numbers. He also said that it is very important to write inside the boxes marked on the form.

The BCMS uses specially designed high-tech scanning equipment to process farmers applications for cattle passports. Incorrectly completed forms cause delays, resulting in a poorer service for farmers, he said.

“The BCMS is learning too. Some passports we have produced contain errors and have taken longer to produce than normal. We are improving our performance to prevent this,” said Mr Evans.

To prevent any further errors, Mr Evans is urging farmers to check all the details on passports when they receive them and, if incorrect, return the passport to the BCMS. A new one will be issued free of charge.