There are instances where even the National ID sytem wont make any difference
We had a calf, days old, swiped, bag of feed poured out and cattle are easily distracted long enough to pluck a sleeping calf
Would not wan't the trouble of feeding a bottle calf, but someone sure did.
With the Nat. EID Tags, they can be cut out and replaced, for $2.00 a theif can steel an entire herd, retag, and no one will ever care to check, unless they go to his farm or premis and find no Mature cows to produce his resultant calves, then he bears the burden of the paper trail from where the cattle came from, it may become more difficult but certainly it is possible
Cattle are butchered privatly all over, even by reputable people, who may be told "here, please butcher this calf for me" they do and they never knew that the little poop was stolen, how can they know, they just perform their job, others, steel, butcher and market stolen beef
Where there is a will there is a way an you can be sure a theif will find it.