Under the new regulations, Taiwan has been added to the list of countries for which Canada does not recognize regionalization policies — that is, the division of a country into zones where an outbreak can be contained while other areas remain disease-free. This means that if even a single ASF case is detected, the entire territory of Taiwan will be considered infected.
This list, which now includes over 60 countries, covers several nations across Africa, South and Southeast Asia, parts of Eastern Europe, as well as China and Russia.
According to the CFIA, the Canadian government and the livestock industry have worked intensively in recent years to prevent the deadly pig disease from entering Canada. African swine fever has in past years devastated pig sectors across Asia, causing severe economic losses.
Under the new requirements, importers of plant-based feed ingredients from Taiwan will be required to provide additional documentation and proof of safety, including:
- a clear declaration of the country of origin for all ingredients;
- a completed CFIA facility questionnaire for the production site.
The agency explains that the purpose of this questionnaire is to allow facilities to demonstrate measures taken to minimize the risk of ASF transmission through feed ingredients.
Such measures may include:
a) heat processing of products before arrival in Canada, or
b) additional mitigation and disinfection steps after arrival.
The CFIA emphasized that the concept of zoning was developed to limit trade disruptions and applies only to regions free from the disease. In the event of an ASF outbreak in Canada, zoning would be among the first measures implemented to contain the infection and mitigate economic damage.
PigUA.info based on materials from canadiancattlemen.ca