Import of Restricted Feeder Cattle From the United States to a Terminal Feedlot

TAHD-DSAT-IE-2010-16-2
November 3, 2010

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Amended: Added the section for Fees.

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Terminal feedlot: A premises or location where cattle are being maintained for feeding and finishing to market weight, followed by direct movement to a slaughter plant in Canada or the United States (U.S.). The movement of all cattle in a terminal feedlot, including Canadian animals, must be direct to slaughter. No animal that comes from the feedlot may be moved to other premises or through a sales facility in Canada. The restrictions and need for documented record keeping apply to all animals in the designated feedlot that is housing imported animals, unless there is an approved separation between yards.

Application for an Import Permit

1. The applicant must be a Canadian resident or corporation.

2. An application for a permit, Form CFIA/ACIA 5083 – Application for Permit to Import, must be made in writing and submitted to a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) district office.

3. The applicant must also submit a diagram of the layout of the premises and documentation outlining the feedlot management practices to facilitate a review of the ability to carry out any of the required risk management measures.

4. CFIA staff, accompanied by the feedlot operator, must perform an initial inspection of the operation.

5. During the CFIA inspection visit, the feeding operation must demonstrate the following:

1. facilities for the handling and tracking of newly imported cattle;
2. regimes that will complete the post-entry treatment, unless performed in the U.S. at the time of certification;
3. maintenance of records; and
4. a records management system that tracks movements of animals into and within the feedlot, and from the feedlot to a slaughter facility, and that provides confirmation of slaughter.

Import Requirements

1. Certification statements to appear on the health certificate:

The animals in the shipment must be accompanied by a certificate of an official veterinarian of the United States or a certificate of a veterinarian endorsed by an official veterinarian of the United States, which states:

1. the animals were born after January 1, 1999, in the United States or Canada, and have resided in either country for their entire life;
2. the animals are identified by a permanent identification system recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture and are not under restriction for movement, slaughter, or destruction control;
3. for at least sixty (60) days immediately prior to export, the cattle were continuously resident in an exporting state that is designated by the United States Department of Agriculture as a tuberculosis accredited-free state;
4. the animals were inspected by a veterinarian within thirty (30) days preceding the date of importation, and it was determined that:
   1. the animals are free from any communicable disease;
   2. the animals were, to the best of the knowledge and belief of a veterinarian, not exposed to any communicable disease within sixty (60) days preceding the date of the inspection;
   3. the animals are fit to travel and can be transported to Canada without undue suffering by reason of infirmity, illness, injury, fatigue, or any other cause; and
   4. to the best of the knowledge and belief of the certifying veterinarian, the heifers/cows in the shipment are not in the second half of pregnancy, and young stock included in the shipment have been weaned and are not on milk replacer.

5. Additional Information

   The official health certificate must also include:

   1. the name and address of the importer;
   2. the location of the importing feedlot;
   3. the name and address of the exporter;
   4. individual animal identification, which includes age in months, sex, breed, colour, markings, and any other identification present on the animal, including brands; and
   5. the CFIA import permit number.

2. Vehicle Sealing

1. Official United States Department of Agriculture or State seals must be applied by the accredited veterinarian to all animal exits from the truck(s) or trailer(s) transporting the shipment following loading.

3. Inspection at Destination – Approved Feedlot

1. The importer shall notify the CFIA district office of the date of arrival of the cattle as far in advance as possible, but no later than twenty-four (24) hours prior to arrival of the animals. The details for inspection at destination must be provided, or arrangements must be made for CFIA inspection.
2. Upon arrival at the feedlot, the seals may be broken and the cattle unloaded in a manner acceptable to an inspector designated under the Health of Animals Act.
3. The animals must be presented for inspection and processing, as specified, within forty-eight (48) hours of arrival. Inspection may be performed by provincial authorities in the course of other functions or a private veterinarian performing service on behalf of the feedlot; otherwise, service will be performed by CFIA staff at an hourly inspection rate. Typically, inspection and verification of identification will be done at a 15% level, unless non-compliance is observed.

Standards for Operation of Feedlot Approved to Import Restricted Feeder Cattle

1. Upon arrival at the importing premises:

1. The imported animals must be presented for inspection as required.

2. All imported animals must receive treatment with an approved product for acaricide (tick) control at the recommended dosage for the particular formulation of the product prior to or within ten (10) days of arrival at the feedlot. Acaricide treatment may be applied at the time of inspection and certification in the U.S., and if so, the information must be documented on the health certificate.

   Tick treatment may be waived if a plan is presented to the CFIA at the time of feedlot approval, and the plan is accepted, that specifies that a private veterinarian will perform monitoring for tick infestation when animals are processed after arrival, as well as at treatment examinations or during necropsy of any animal. Tick treatment must be applied when deemed necessary by a veterinarian or a CFIA veterinarian.

3. Cattle imported as restricted feeders must be identified with a Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) tag. The importer, with notice to the appropriate identification agency, may supply CCIA tags and have these used as official identification for import; however, should United States Department of Agriculture tags be used, the importer must maintain a record cross-referencing the Canadian tag applied to each imported animal with the United States Department of Agriculture ear tag. United States Department of Agriculture tags, if present, must not be removed from imported animals.
4. All other cattle in the feedlot, in addition to the imported animals, must bear a CCIA tag, and records of identification and location in the feedlot must be maintained in the records database.

Record Keeping

1. The operator of an approved feedlot must maintain a record-keeping system that can document the movements of all animals into the feedlot, within the feedlot, and from the feedlot. Methods must be in place to track all cattle within the feedlot and their movement to slaughter or to a terminal disposition. All cattle in a terminal feedlot housing imported animals are not permitted to move between feedlots nor out of the feedlot for any purpose other than movement to slaughter or disposal as a carcass. The record-keeping system must be capable of storing information for a period not less than one year after the last imported animal has left the feedlot. The record keeping must be able to track animals exported for slaughter in the U.S. and those that succumb and are disposed of.

2. An importer who is not the owner of the animals in the approved feedlot must contractually arrange with the animals' owners to take the necessary measures to ensure that no animals are removed from the feedlot, except in accordance with the provisions of this document.

Animal Health Records

3. Feedlots should be monitored for signs of disease by feedlot personnel and/or veterinarians on a daily basis.

4. Records must be kept, as required by a licensed veterinarian, to document treatment for animals in the feedlot, and must include reports for any post-mortem diagnosis made by the veterinarian on animals that die while in the feedlot.

If the veterinarian performing duties in the feedlot is aware of any significant increase in feedlot morbidity or mortality above what is typical for that feedlot and which the veterinarian cannot explain, then the CFIA District Veterinarian shall be contacted by the veterinarian and they will jointly conduct a disease investigation to determine that the increase in disease occurrence is not due to a reportable disease.

5. Within ten (10) days after arrival at the feedlot, female animals must be confirmed to be non-pregnant or treated to terminate pregnancy.

Post Import Audits

1. First Visit – Post-Arrival Imported Cattle

The operator of a feedlot acquiring terminal restricted feeder cattle must have ready by the fifteenth (15) day after the import of a group of animals the following documentation:

1. the export health certificate(s) that accompanied all import shipments and records for breaking of seals if not performed by CFIA staff;
2. confirmation of inspection of imported feeders at the feedlot if not performed by the CFIA; documentation of the required tick treatment, unless waived, in which case a report of examination is necessary; and the records of the CCIA tag numbers applied to imported animals matched to the U.S. tag number, unless CCIA tags were used for identification for export;
3. record of pen allocation correlated with the identification listed on the export health certificate(s) for imported animals, and the CCIA identification and pen allocation of all other animals that constitute the terminal feedlot containing imported animals;
4. records of program-mandated treatment applied to imported cattle, where necessary;
5. results of any post-mortem diagnosis made by a licensed veterinarian on imported cattle; and
6. movements of Canadian cattle from the feedlot for slaughter since the arrival of the imported feeders.

2. Post-Arrival Audits

On-site audits of terminal feedlots housing imported animals are to occur at least on a monthly basis to examine and verify the following records:

1. records of pen allocation correlated with identification for imported animals and the pen allocation, and numbers for all other animals that constitute the terminal feedlot containing imported animals;
2. results of any post-mortems performed by a licensed veterinarian on all cattle since the arrival of imported animals; and
3. movement of all the cattle that were sent to slaughter from the feedlot since the arrival of the imported animals, or the last audit visit, and the records for confirmation of slaughter.

Private veterinarians who perform services for the feedlot may perform the audit functions and submit reports to CFIA district offices at the required time intervals. The activity of private veterinarians is subject to oversight by CFIA veterinarians, or where the audit function cannot be performed by a private veterinarian, a CFIA veterinarian will perform the service. Feedlots are responsible for the cost of having private veterinarians perform functions, but all services provided by the CFIA for oversight and/or audit functions will be cost-recovered at the applicable hourly rate for such services.

3. Feedlots must arrange to provide notification to CFIA district offices by fax or other means prior to, or at the time of, departure of animals to a slaughter location. The information, at a minimum, must include the number of animals leaving and the destination plant for slaughter.

4. CFIA oversight will include random searches of the CCIA database to confirm the disposition of animals reported as going to slaughter in Canada or exported to the U.S.

5. Audits may be increased or may take place at any time where compliance with the requirements of the program is in doubt.

6. A terminal feedlot remains subject to all audit conditions between the time of the import of the first group of animals and the feedlot being completely empty for a minimum twenty-four (24) hour period, unless the CFIA district office responsible for the feedlot is satisfied that at least 120 days have elapsed since the removal of all animals that were present in the feedlot when the last group of imported animals entered.

Targeted Surveillance Within the Feedlot and Outside the Feedlot

The CFIA Epidemiology & Surveillance Section (ESS) will build into the proposed national surveillance plans a sampling regime for animals from terminal feedlots as they move through slaughter plants in Canada. ESS will also devise a strategy to obtain samples in a targeted manner from the national cattle herd residing at or near the periphery of the interface with terminal feedlots. Terminal feedlot operators and their veterinarians are expected to engage with the CFIA in the design of the sampling plans and to provide suitable notice for dates of slaughter and location to facilitate the collection of samples. Samples collected will not be limited to targeting for specific diseases, but will be used for multiple diseases as determined by ESS to fulfill their requirements.

2010 Fees - Year-Round Importation

Restricted Feeder Program

Fixed Costs

	Description	Fees/Charges
Premises Approval (Yearly Fee)	First inspection	$300.00
	If facility was approved in the previous 24 months, and no change has been made to the facility or its management.	$120.00
Import Permit (Yearly Fee)	Over a 12-month period; multiple use.	$60.00

Variable Costs

	Description	Fees/Charges
Port-of-Entry Inspection	Canada Border Services Agency (Customs Release), first animal.	$24.00
	For each additional animal.	$1.45
Risk Assessment Fee	(Seasonal reviews no longer conducted)	(Nil)
Destination Inspection	Designated / Brand Inspector or Private Veterinarian.	Applicable charges
	If a Brand Inspector or Private Veterinarian is not available, and CFIA inspection is required. The fees include travel, on-farm time and time to complete reports.	$60.00/hour
Post-Import Inspection and Audit (Multiple Visits)	As supplied by Private Veterinarian if approved.	Applicable charges
	CFIA fees: the fees include travel, on-farm time and time to complete oversight and/or audits where required.	$60.00/hour