Notice to industry: Verification of farmed cervids for export to the United States using export certificate HA1891

The United States Department of Agriculture Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) import policy ensures that cervids imported from Canada meet chronic wasting disease (CWD) standards for entry into the United States (U.S.).

Additional verification is required to ensure that exported cervids are not linked to CWD-positive premises, come from herds certified through a Canadian Herd Certification Program (HCP), and have confirmed negative CWD test results for all cervids that die on the premises before export.

Effective September 1, 2023, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) will be required to complete and certify an addendum to export certificate HA1891 for farmed cervids.

Although an addendum certification with additional CFIA oversight is not officially required until September 1, 2023, immediate verification of traceability records is required to ensure that animals linked to a CWD-positive premises or resided with a CWD-positive animal, in the last 60 months, are not exported to the U.S. in the interim. This is to make sure no exposed or diseased animals enter the U.S. from Canada.

The following premises/farmed cervids are ineligible for export to the U.S.

• any premises epidemiologically linked to a positive CWD animal or premises in the last 60 months prior to the scheduled export
• certified^Footnote 1 CWD HCP premises which:
  • purchased animals from HCP premises that do not meet the export requirements at the time of the purchase
  • have not received negative test results for all animals (12 months of age or older) that died from any cause on the premise

In order to export cervids to U.S., exporters are responsible for maintaining detailed records demonstrating the herd history, at the individual animal level, for the previous 60 months. Exporters are expected to have completed the tracing work and must be able to provide all necessary documentation to support CFIA verification. In some cases, these records may reside with other parties, such as the provincial authorities or CWD HCP Regional Administrator, in which case, exporters must obtain these records for CFIA verification. Any incomplete documentation will delay CFIA's ability to confirm the requirements, rendering animals ineligible for export to the U.S. until complete records are received. It is important that exporters requesting CFIA verification allow sufficient time for a thorough assessment of the eligibility for export.

USDA APHIS has approved a limited number of derogations from the increased CFIA oversight and issuance of the addendum certification. Exports coming from the explicitly named farms and going to the associated named premises within the derogation, require only the issuance of HA1891. As these derogations are fluid, based on the disease status of the exporting premise and the controls at destination, this derogation must be verified for each export prior to endorsement of HA1891. Any requests for derogations must be made by individual State Animal Health Authorities to USDA APHIS directly.

Information for cervid exporters

• Chronic wasting disease of deer and elk
• Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certification Programs
• National Standards for the Chronic Wasting Disease Herd Certification Programs
• Live animal testing for chronic wasting disease