CLTS birth date flag moves to 12 months on October 1

Producers will have more time to enter or update an animal’s birth date in the Canadian Livestock Tracking System (CLTS) before a flag appears on the record.

Effective October 1, 2026, the birth date flag threshold will increase from nine months to 12 months (365 days). The change follows industry feedback and is intended to better reflect on-farm production and record-keeping practices.

Birth date reporting in the CLTS is voluntary. Producers may record the birth dates of animals born on their farm and identified with an approved Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) indicator to support age verification.

What does the flag mean?

Beginning October 1, the CLTS will flag a record if a birth date is entered or changed more than 12 months after the animal’s reported date of birth. The flag will appear in the animal’s tag history and on its birth certificate.

A flag does not mean the producer is non-compliant or that the birth date is inaccurate. It simply indicate the information was entered or updated after the 12-month threshold. Producers are not required to take additional verification steps, and neither CCIA nor the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will automatically contact a producer because a flag appears.

For example, if an older cow loses a tag and a producer re-tags the animal and enters its accurate birth date, the record may be flagged because the information was added after the 12-month threshold. The flag does not mean the birth date is incorrect.

What happens to existing flags?

As a one-time update, flags applied under the previous nine-month threshold will be removed from records where the birth date was entered within 12 months. Once a record is flagged under the new threshold, however, the flag cannot be removed.

The flag was introduced in 2022 at the request of CFIA’s BSE Program.

Why does birth date information matter?

Birth date information may be used at slaughter to help determine whether an animal is under 30 months of age, which can affect its value. If an animal’s age is in question, dentition is considered the most accurate method of determining age.

Producers who choose to record birth dates in the CLTS can avoid a flag by entering the information before an animal reaches 12 months of age. For more information on birth date reporting, birth certificates and age verification, visit the CCIA website.