Geneva | Reuters — Ukraine has introduced emergency restrictions on the import of pigs from Canada, the U.S. and seven other countries, it said in documents filed at the World Trade Organization on Wednesday.
Ukraine said porcine epidemic diarrhea (PED) had been identified in Canada, China, Columbia, the Dominican Republic, Japan, Mexico and the U.S., so it was temporarily banning their exports of live pigs and feed produced from pork products.
The restriction came into force on July 25, Ukraine said.
“Following the recent outbreaks of (PED), Ukraine considered it necessary to review the animal health requirements for the entry of consignments of porcine animals into Ukraine from countries in which the disease is present,” the Ukrainian government said in its filing.
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Canadian officials since January have confirmed cases of the PED virus (PEDv) in hogs on 63 farms in southern Ontario, one each in Quebec and Prince Edward Island and two in Manitoba — one of which detected a second round of infections last month.
The disease since early last year has killed an estimated eight million pigs in the U.S., or about 10 per cent of the country’s hog herd, pushing live hog and retail pork prices to record highs as supplies have been cut.
Ukraine also put a temporary ban on Polish exports of animals susceptible to African swine fever, as well as their products, raw materials and semen, effective from July 25, following an outbreak of the disease among pigs in Poland.
It put a restriction on the same products from Russia from July 21 after an outbreak affected the regions of Bryansk, Orenburg and Kursk, Ukraine’s document said.
— Reporting for Reuters by Tom Miles in Geneva. Includes files from AGCanada.com Network staff.
