EID is a subject which has dominated discussions within the sheep industry for well over a year now and still, the vast majority of farmers are confused as to what it means and how it will affect them.
Horribly confused about the issue myself, I went down to Defra yesterday (Monday, August 17) to sit down with Terry Gurnhill, who heads up the team hoping to implement an incredibly complicated set of proposals.
And I certainly don't envy them.
With the various industry groups all taking different positions on how to implement the regulations, it is made so much harder.
In particular, discussion now centres around slaughter tags and whether or not these should be electronic or manual.
The Livestock Auctioneers Association (LAA) has called for an electronic tag, warning market prices could suffer as many breeders may refuse to buy sheep they will have to read manually.
Others such as the NFU have said this would impose too great a burden on farmers, having to pay around 40p extra a tag.
The LAA's argument however is that the 40p extra is nothing compared to the drop in prices if those buyers stop buying.
The intricacies of the argument aside - and there are many - one thing is for sure, the industry has to come to some sort of agreement.
It was clear from the discussion with Defra that they are trying to draw up legislation that makes EID as easy as possible within the framework of the EU's directorate.
That's not easy, and it first needs a concensus from industry.
Failing that, Defra will have to make the final decision and the result could be a policy that pleases everyone.
Or it could please nobody.
It would also delay the process, meaning the legislation may not be drawn up until October or November, leaving little time for farmers to get their heads round these onerous regulations.
Surely, it is better that the industry gets together and finds a workable solution, rather than fighting over detail and making the whole process harder on the farmers who will be forced to obey the rules.
