Travellers entering Canada from the U.S. may now bring in uncooked poultry products, live poultry and eggs from seven of the 15 states that have had outbreaks of avian flu since December.
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) on Tuesday confirmed it now considers the states of Washington, Idaho, California and Oregon free of highly pathogenic (“high-path”) avian influenza.
Montana, Indiana and Arkansas, which each had just one property confirmed with high-path avian flu, were declared avian flu-free last month.
Washington had confirmed five properties with H5 avian flu in January and February, affecting 6,710 birds in total. Neighbouring Idaho reported just one such property in January, affecting 30 birds.
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Oregon reported two such cases in December and February respectively, affecting about 200 birds, while California reported two properties in January and February affecting 134,400 and 112,900 birds respectively.
CFIA’s restrictions on cross-border poultry traffic still apply to poultry, birds and eggs from Minnesota, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), as of Tuesday, has lifted all restrictions on movement of live poultry and poultry products from 11 of the 15 affected states.
The four hardest-hit states — Minnesota, Iowa, South Dakota and Nebraska, which between them saw over 46 million birds affected — remain under APHIS restrictions for poultry transit and exports.
States not yet released from APHIS restrictions “are making good progress, and control areas in those states are being removed as they meet the time elements and other measures for release,” APHIS deputy administrator Dr. John Clifford wrote in his report Tuesday to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
USDA has already lifted its restrictions on imports of poultry and related products from Ontario and British Columbia, which respectively saw three farms hit by high-path avian flu in April and 13 farms affected in December and February.
Barring any new cases, Canada could be considered free of high-path avian flu as early as mid-October by OIE standards.
Items still subject to CFIA’s restrictions from the eight remaining affected states include live birds and hatching eggs, eggs, yolks, egg whites (albumen), poultry meat, feathers, poultry manure, poultry litter and raw pet foods containing poultry products. Travellers “may not bring these items into Canada.”
Commercial imports are also restricted — but only from specific quarantine zones — from the remaining eight states until further notice, CFIA said.
Live pet birds may be brought into Canada if they come with official certification from USDA, CFIA added. — AGCanada.com Network
