Pork and Pork Products From Mexico Transiting the United States

SUMMARY: We are proposing to allow fresh, chilled, and frozen pork and

pork products from the Mexican State of Chihuahua to transit the United

States, under certain conditions, for export to another country.

Currently, we allow such pork and pork products from the Mexican State

of Sonora to transit the United States for export. Otherwise, fresh,

chilled, or frozen pork and pork products are prohibited movement into

the United States from Mexico because of hog cholera in Mexico.

Chihuahua, like Sonora, appears to be a low risk area for hog cholera,

and we believe that fresh, chilled, and frozen pork and pork products

from Chihuahua could transit the United States with minimal risk of

introducing hog cholera. This action would facilitate trade.

DATES: Consideration will be given only to comments received on or

before October 20, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Please send an original and three copies of your comments to

Docket No. 95-037-1, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS,

suite 3C03, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238. Please

state that your comments refer to Docket No. 95-037-1. Comments

received may be inspected at USDA, room 1141, South Building, 14th

Street and Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC, between 8 a.m. and

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. Persons wishing to

inspect comments are requested to call ahead on (202) 690-2817 to

facilitate entry into the comment reading room.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Michael David, Senior Staff

Veterinarian, Import/Export Animals, National Center for Import and

Export, VS, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 39, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231,

(301) 734-5034.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The regulations in 9 CFR part 94 (referred to below as the

regulations) prohibit or restrict the importation of certain animals

and animal products into the United States to prevent the introduction

of certain animal diseases. Section 94.9 of the regulations prohibits

the importation of pork and pork products into the United States from

countries where hog cholera exists, unless the pork or pork products

have been treated in one of several ways, all of which involve heating

or curing and drying.

Because hog cholera exists in Mexico, pork and pork products from

Mexico must meet the requirements of Sec. 94.9 to be imported into the

United States. However, under Sec. 94.15, pork and pork products from

Sonora, Mexico, that are not eligible for entry into the United States

in accordance with the regulations may transit the United States for

immediate export if certain conditions are met. This provision was

added to the regulations in 1992, following a U.S. Department of

Agriculture investigation of the hog cholera situation in Sonora, and a

determination that pork and pork products from Sonora could transit the

United States, under certain conditions, with minimal risk of

introducing hog cholera.

Mexico's Director of Animal Health has requested that we allow pork

and pork products from the Mexican State of Chihuahua to transit the

United States for export under the same conditions that currently apply

to pork and pork products from Sonora. In response, officials of the

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) met recently in

Chihuahua with Mexican representatives knowledgeable in disease

prevention, epidemiology, and diagnostic methods. The team reviewed the

hog cholera situation in Chihuahua (discussed below) and recommended

granting Mexico's request.

The last outbreak of hog cholera in the Mexican State of Chihuahua

occurred in 1989 in the municipality of Cuauhtemoc. Vaccination for hog

cholera was discontinued in early 1990. Mexico officially recognized

Chihuahua as free of hog cholera in September 1993.

The team found several factors contributing to Chihuahua's apparent

success in remaining free of hog cholera: Chihuahua's location; lack of

any significant pork production in Chihuahua; and controls by the

Division of Animal Health on the movement into Chihuahua of live swine

and pork and pork products.

Chihuahua is surrounded on the north and west by other hog cholera

free Mexican States and by the United States, which is free of hog

cholera; on the south by the Sierra Madre Mountains; and on the east by

the State of Coahuila, which is in the final stages of a hog cholera

eradication program, where no cases of hog cholera have been detected

for at least 12 months and a prohibition on vaccination for hog cholera

has been instituted.

Swine production in Chihuahua accounts for only about 5 percent of

national production. Only about 1 percent of this production is

generated by commercial operations; nearly all the pork produced in

Chihuahua is produced by agricultural communes or backyard operations

for local consumption. Most of the pork processed in Chihuahua is

imported from the Mexican State of Sonora, which is recognized by

Mexico as free of hog cholera, or from the United States and Canada,

which are free of hog cholera.

Five facilities in Chihuahua process pork under the official

Mexican inspection system. Of these facilities, only one is a slaughter

plant, and it handles mostly cattle. The other facilities further

process meat (custom cuts, cooking, etc.). Market and cull hogs raised

in Chihuahua are slaughtered primarily in municipal plants for local

consumption.

As required by the Mexican Government, Chihuahua and other States

recognized by Mexico as free of hog cholera may only import live swine

and pork from other hog cholera-free States and countries. The Mexican

Government requires shipments from hog cholera-free countries to be

[[Page 43410]]

accompanied by a certificate of origin issued by that country's

veterinary authorities and by a certificate of import issued by the

Mexican veterinary authorities. Chihuahua and other States recognized

by Mexico as being free of hog cholera also require and issue their own

permits and health certificates, further ensuring the origin of

imported products. In addition, live swine and pork imported into these

hog cholera-free States must be shipped in sealed trucks, and all

shipments are inspected at inspection stations located either on State

lines or at international ports of entry.

Under these circumstances, we believe that there would be little,

if any, risk of introducing hog cholera into the United States by

allowing pork and pork products from Chihuahua to transit the United

States for export under the same conditions that currently apply to

pork and pork products from Sonora.

These conditions will be as follows:

1. Any person wishing to transport pork or pork products from

Chihuahua through the United States for export must first obtain a

permit for importation from APHIS. The application for the permit tells

APHIS who will be involved in the transportation, how much and what

type of pork and pork products will be transported, when they will be

transported, and the method and route of shipment.

2. The pork or pork products must be sealed in Chihuahua in a

leakproof container, with a serially numbered seal approved by APHIS.

The container must remain sealed at all times while transiting the

United States.

3. The person moving the pork or pork products through the United

States must inform the APHIS officer at the U.S. port of arrival, in

writing, of the following information before the pork or pork products

arrive in the United States: The times and dates that the pork or pork

products are expected at the port of arrival in the United States; the

time schedule and route of the shipments through the United States; and

the permit number and serial numbers of the seals on the containers.

4. The pork or pork products must transit the United States under

Customs bond.

5. The pork or pork products must be exported from the United

States within the time period specified on the permit.

Any pork or pork products exceeding the time limit specified on the

permit or transiting in violation of any of the requirements of the

permit or the regulations may be destroyed or otherwise disposed of at

the discretion of the Administrator, APHIS, pursuant to section 2 of

the Act of February 2, 1903, as amended (21 U.S.C. 111).

We believe that applying these same safeguards to shipments of pork

and pork products from Chihuahua would prevent tampering with the

shipments, ensure that the shipments actually leave the United States,

and otherwise ensure that shipments would not present a risk of

introducing hog cholera. Therefore, we are proposing to amend

Sec. 94.15 to allow pork and pork products from the Mexican State of

Chihuahua to transit the United States for export under the same

conditions that currently apply to pork and pork products from Sonora.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12866.

The rule has been determined to be not significant for the purposes of

Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, has not been reviewed by the

Office of Management and Budget.

This proposed rule would allow fresh, chilled, and frozen pork and

pork products from the Mexican State of Chihuahua to transit the United

States, under certain conditions, for export to another country. It has

been determined that Chihuahua is a low risk area for hog cholera and

has the veterinary infrastructure necessary to monitor for the presence

of this disease.

Because Interstate Commerce Commission regulations forbid Mexican

carriers from hauling pork and pork products beyond the border zone,

small specialized U.S. transport companies and brokerage houses would

benefit from the proposed rule. The additional economic activity from

such trucking activity is estimated at $195,865 per year, assuming the

trucks make 208 total trips per year (the current level of shipments

from the Mexican State of Sonora through the United States).

There appears to be little risk of hog cholera exposure from

Mexican pork shipments from Chiahuahua through the United States.

Assuming that proper risk management techniques continue to be applied

in Mexico, and that accident and exposure risk would be minimized by

proper handling during transport, the risk of exposure to hog cholera

from pork in transit from Mexico through the United States would be

minimal. At a rate of 208 trips per year, an accident that could lead

to an outbreak of hog cholera could be expected once in 4,109,139

years. Even at a rate of 1,000 trips per year, one accident capable of

resulting in a United States outbreak of hog cholera could be expected

once every 854,701 years.

Both the United States and Mexico are net pork importers. United

States pork imports represent approximately 2-3 percent of production,

and Mexican imports represent 7-8 percent of production. With favorable

income growth expected in Mexico due to trade liberalization, meat

imports, including pork products, are expected to grow and limit

Mexican pork exports. However, facilitating export opportunities for

the Mexican pork industry may provide incentives for continued efforts

to eradicate hog cholera from infected Mexican States.

Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and

Plant Health Inspection Service has determined that this action would

not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small

entities.

Executive Order 12778

This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778,

Civil Justice Reform. If this proposed rule is adopted: (1) All State

and local laws and regulations that are inconsistent with this rule

will be preempted; (2) no retroactive effect will be given to this

rule; and (3) administrative proceedings will not be required before

parties may file suit in court challenging this rule.

Paperwork Reduction Act

This document contains no new information collection or

recordkeeping requirements under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.).

List of Subjects in 9 CFR Part 94

Animal diseases, Imports, Livestock, Meat and meat products, Milk,

Poultry and poultry products, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Accordingly, 9 CFR part 94 would be amended as follows:

PART 94--RINDERPEST, FOOT-AND-MOUTH DISEASE, FOWL PEST (FOWL

PLAGUE), VELOGENIC VISCEROTROPIC NEWCASTLE DISEASE, AFRICAN SWINE

FEVER, HOG CHOLERA, AND BOVINE SPONGIFORM ENCEPHALOPATHY:

PROHIBITED AND RESTRICTED IMPORTATIONS

1. The authority citation for part 94 would be revised to read as

follows:

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 147a, 150ee, 161, 162, and 450; 19 U.S.C.

1306; 21 U.S.C. 111, 114a, 134a, 134b, 134c, 134f, 136, and 136a; 31

U.S.C. 9701; 42 U.S.C. 4331 and 4332; 7 CFR 2.17, 2.51, and

371.2(d).

Sec. 94.15 [Amended]

2. In Sec. 94.15, paragraph (b), the introductory text and

paragraph (b)(2)

[[Page 43411]]

would be amended by adding the words ``Chihuahua or'' immediately

before the word ``Sonora''.

Done in Washington, DC, this 14th day of August 1995.

Terry Medley,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 95-20593 Filed 8-18-95; 8:45 am]

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