The Tables Have Turned- USDA Change Minds on Bringing Waterfowl Across the Border

After 10 stressful days for outfitters, freelancers, small town economies. We are now able to bring our wild game meat back across the border. For some it may have never affected them, but for a community that has had its ass kicked from the Covid guidelines and now this, it was not looking promising.

RECAP-

Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Continues to spread through North America(HPAI) read newspapers and websites. The outbreak was said to be caused by a wild American Wigeon in Colleton County, South Carolina in December 2021(aphis.USDA.gov). Eurasian H5 HPAI has not been detected in a wild bird in the United States since 2016. There was a case of HPAI (H7N3) in one commercial meat turkey flock in South Carolina in 2020 due to a North American lineage virus (aphis.usda.gov).
As the spring migration came into full affect, the flu had spread throughout North America. As birds were leaving their wintering grounds and heading north, it brought cases from the south all the way up to Alaska and potentially further. Cases started to slow down throughout the summer months but recently this fall there has been new cases arising in western and Midwest states from commercialized farms.

On Friday September 2nd at 6:35 pm The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced that effective immediately game birds taken by hunters in Canada will not be permitted to enter the United States regardless of the province in which they were taken (ducks.org).


FAST FORWARD 10 DAYS
Effective September 12th APHIS will allow import of wild game meat. APHIS has been working with federal agencies and stakeholders for the importing of wild game meat.

THE RULES

Unprocessed hunter-harvested wild game bird carcasses, originating from or transiting Canada, must meet following conditions:
• Viscera, head, neck, feet, skin, and one wing have been removed; and
• Feathers have been removed, with the exception of one wing – as required by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for species identification; and
• Carcasses must be rinsed in fresh, clean, potable water prior to packaging and must not have visible evidence of contamination with dirt, blood, or feces; and
• Carcasses must be imported in leak-proof plastic packaging and stored in a leak proof cooler or container during transport and import; and
• Carcasses must be chilled or frozen during transport and import.

-Trevor Austin