Mexico – Export requirements for meat and poultry products

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1. Eligible/ineligible products

Eligible products

The following products are eligible for export to Mexico:
- beef
- bison meat
- deer meat
- goat and/or sheep meat offal and viscera
- pork
- poultry
- composite foods containing meat, dairy products, egg products, honey or gelatine of bovine origin
- composite foods containing meat, dairy products, egg products, honey or gelatine of porcine origin
Refer to section 5 for details
Export of samples
Samples of meat and poultry meat products intended for laboratory examination, research, evaluative testing or trade show exhibition are not for human consumption
Product must be sourced and processed only from establishments eligible to export to Mexico.
Form CFIA/ACIA 1454 and related annex have to be used to export samples to Mexico.
Imported meat products
Products for export to Mexico manufactured in Canada may contain legally imported meat ingredients. The operator/exporter is responsible for obtaining a declaration from the competent authorities of the country of origin. The competent authorities must declare that the producing establishment of the meat ingredient to be exported to Canada is approved by the Mexican Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) and that the product is eligible for direct export to Mexico.
The declaration must be kept on file with the Canadian export certificate.

Ineligible products

Shipments of meat products in combo bins:
Importation of frozen meat products in combo bins is not permitted.
Imported poultry meat
The use of imported poultry meat is not permitted for export of raw poultry products and/or Pate to Mexico at this time.

2. Pre-export approvals by competent authority of importing country

Establishments must be approved by Mexican authorities. Establishments eligible to export to Mexico can use only one name for export of meat and meat products to Mexico. See Annex 1 for details.
- Refer to Annex 1 for the list of approved establishments
- To be included in the list, operators must submit Annex I through their Area Office

3. Products specifications, production controls and inspection requirements

There are no product specifications, production controls and inspection requirements at this time.

4. Labelling, marking and packaging requirements

Labelling

(Refer also to Annex K)

To be in compliance with the Mexican requirements, the labelling must be done as follows:

Keep the plant label, i.e. the name and registration number of the plant, generic name of the product, net weight in kilograms and packaging date in the language of origin.
The export stamp and lot number (as determined by the operator) must appear on each shipping container. To prevent problems at the time of import inspection, the establishment number appearing in the export stamp should be the establishment number of the manufacturing establishment shown on the label of the product. The term lot must be used only once on the shipping container/boxes destined to Mexico.
There must be another label on each container, in Spanish, giving the following information:
- product description
- name of the country of origin
- plant name, address and registration number, and
- the storage instructions ''keep refrigerated'' or ''keep frozen'' whichever is the case
All these labels must be placed on the panel facing out the pallet so it is available for inspection without further manipulation. They should not overlap and hide any required information. A space of 3 x 8 cm must be left open so that the stamp of approval or rejection, as applicable, can be placed on the panel.
The labelling information may be printed, stamped or applied by means of a sticker.
Labels on boxes, containers or combos containing meat for further processing in Mexico must bear the name of the establishment as shown in Annex 1.
The Mexican authorities allow the use of the name 'Also Doing Business as' (ADB) on sales package labels, provided that the ADB name appears with the establishment's main name on primary packaging (packaging in contact with the meat). The ADB name must appear in brackets below the main name, in smaller type. In such cases, both names must appear on the export certificate.

Note:

In the case of carcasses the inspection legend alone is acceptable (Refer also to Annex K).

5. Documentation requirements

General

At the request of the exporter/importer, and if all applicable Japanese requirements are met, the certificate in Annex D: Certification in Relation to Japanese Requirements of Introduction section of E-cert can be issued.
All certificates for meat products exported to Mexico must have slaughter and processed dates typed in the box "Slaughter date / Process date" of form CFIA/ACIA 1454 in day/month/year (dd-mm-yy) format. For example:
- Slaughter date: 15-01-2011; or, 15 to 20-01-2011
- Process date: 18-01-2011; or, 18 to 23-01-2011
The inspection seal must be stamped on the certificates in red ink.
The veterinary inspector's name and title must be printed, typed or stamped in upper case.
The Health certificates for export to Mexico must be completed either electronically or typewritten. Handwritten certificates will not be accepted by the Mexican authorities.
To prevent problems at the point of entry, it is advised that replaced annexes be signed by the same veterinary inspector who signs the form CFIA/ACIA 1454.
As of August 9, 2022, SENASICA will only accept "Continuation sheet to CFIA/ACIA 1454", in order to provide supplementary information, as needed when the "product description field" of CFIA/ACIA 1454 does not have enough space to describe the products certified. In case supplementary information is provided on the CFIA letter head, these documents will not be accepted by Mexican authorities.

Certificates covering meat products derived from one species only

Beef
- Beef – Fresh meat
  - Annex D must be issued. It covers bone-in and boneless beef, marinated raw meats and other raw meat products
  - Note: Trimmings are covered by a separate certificate (see below).
- Beef – Trimmings
  - Annex D-1 must be issued. Only trimmings of skeletal muscle are authorized for export.
- Beef – Offal
  - Annex D-2 must be issued. Only lips, diaphragm, cheek meat and feet are authorized for export.
- Beef – Viscera
  - Annex D-3 must be issued. Only tongues, tripe, hearts, kidneys, livers, lungs and thymus are authorized for export.
  - Note: Livers derived from animals of all ages are eligible for export to Mexico.
- Beef – Edible tallow
  - Annex D-4 must be issued.
- Beef – Weasand
  - Annex D-5 must be issued.
- Beef – Small Intestines
  - Annex D-6 must be issued
- Beef – Head Meat
  - Annex D-7 must be issued
- Beef – Ground Meat
  - Annex D-8 must be issued
- Beef skewers – fully cooked
  - Annex J must be used
Bison meat
- Annex G must be issued.
Deer meat
- Annex H must be issued. The certification also covers meat derived from other cervidae.
Goat and/or sheep meat, offal and viscera
- Meat, offal (head and feet) and viscera of animals of all ages are allowed.
- Annex F must be issued.
Pork
- Fresh pork meat, viscera and offal, and Raw smoked pork meat
  - Annex A must be issued. It covers raw smoked pork meat, raw pork products, including viscera (all parts in the cavity of the carcass) for example: tongue, and offal (head, cheek, tail, sternum, glands, unrendered fat with or without traces of meat, lips, feet, mask, ears, jowls, legs, skin with up to 10-15% fat and trunk.
- Bacon – cooked or cooked and smoked
  - Annex I-3 must be issued.
  - Note: This annex must only be used for cooked meat.
- Dry-cured hams and pork shoulders
  - Annex I must be issued. It covers Serrano hams, prosciuttos and similar dry-cured products.
- Lard
  - Annex I-4 must be issued
- Pork in brine
  - Annex I-5 must be issued.
- Boar Meat
  - Annex L must be issued.
Poultry
- Poultry meat – Raw poultry meat, carcasses, turkey carcasses with packaged viscera placed in their cavities, mechanically separated meat (MSM), viscera and offal.
  - Annex B must be issued.
  - Note: The operator/exporter are responsible to make sure that vehicles or containers that transport the product must be kept sealed until their arrival in Mexico.
- Poultry meat – Cooked, pre-cooked and smoked meat.
  - Annex B-2 must be issued for heat-treated poultry meat. The HRZ corresponding to this annex also includes dehydrated poultry meat in powder
  - Annex B-2 must be used for Chicken nuggets made with chicken only and no animal by product is added
  - Annex J must be used for chicken nuggets made with chicken and other animal by products like milk, eggs
  - Note: Poultry pates are covered by a separate annex (see below).
- Poultry pates
  - Annex B-3 must be issued. It covers poultry pates and terrines, but not mousse de foie gras.
- Poultry fat
  - Annex B4 must be issued for poultry fat derived from domestic birds, for example, chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese

Certificates for products derived from more than one species

Dry-cured beef and/or pork products in casings
- Annex I-1 must be issued. It covers all dry-cured salamis, sausages and similar products.
Heat treated beef, pork and/or poultry meat products
- Annex I-2 must be issued. It covers heat-treated sausages in casings and deli meats.

Certificates for composite foods containing meat, dairy products, egg products, honey or gelatine of bovine origin

The exporter has the responsibility to inquire with the Mexican authorities if the product to be exported is deemed as a composite. In that case, Annex J must be issued.

Certificates for composite foods containing meat, dairy products, egg products, honey or gelatine of porcine origin

The exporter has the responsibility to inquire with the Mexican authorities if the product to be exported is deemed as a composite. In that case, Annex J-1 must be issued.

Additional certification

For annexes that contain more than one page, the Mexican authorities have requested that the bottom right corner of every page be stamped with the CFIA official seal and initialed by the signing veterinarian, except for the final page, which must be completed as indicated.

HRZ and CFIA veterinary certification

A table matching HRZs with CFIA veterinary certificates has been produced to facilitate the work of all concerned (see Annex C in this section). This is a summary of the best available information and it does not change the responsibility of the operator/exporter as outlined in section 6 to ensure that the appropriate certificate is being used for the product intended for export.
Note: To export of composite product without meat, CFIA/ACIA 1454 with Annex J can be used. Export Application-Verification Form, Annex H CFIA/ACIA 5344 is not required to complete.

Ruminant products in transit through the USA

In addition to meeting Mexican requirements, meat products derived from ruminants are subject to USDA/APHIS transit requirements. Please see details in Mexico section Annex E.

6. Other information

The Mexican authorities Servicio Nacional de Sanidad, Inocuidad y Calidad Agroalimentaria (SENASICA) maintain an on-line library of import requirements Módulo de Consulta de Requisitos Zoosanitarios para la importación (MCRZI). The operator/exporter is responsible for matching the zoo-sanitary requirements (HRZ or Hoja de requisitos zoosanitarios) of the product intended for export with the corresponding CFIA certification. The operator/exporter is also responsible for requesting the appropriate annex from the CFIA inspector. Any discrepancy between an HRZ certification requirements and the approved annex for the product intended for export should be brought to the attention of the inspector. The operator/exporter bears full responsibility to ensure that the certification provided by the CFIA (see section 5) is in compliance with the certification requirements appearing on the applicable HRZ.
Only HRZs published on the MCRZI will be considered for certification. If an HRZ is not posted, the importer/exporter must request its publication. Refer to SENASICA's web site for the procedure and timelines.
For the return of Canadian meat products from Mexico to Canada, Canadian Animal Health regulations require that the containers used for transportation must remain sealed at all times. Read more details on the Returns and Permit Application Process for Canadian Animals, Semen, Embryos, Animal Products, Animal By-Products, and Finished Pet Food.
Shipments must enter Mexico at a port of entry with approved storage facilities. The exporter/importer should refer to the on-line HRZ prior to shipping. Shipments destined to federally inspected plants in Mexico could be inspected at destination rather than at the border. The rate of product inspection will be based on the past record of the establishment and/or the customs broker. This is determined on a port-by-port basis.

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