Language selection

Search

Conditions for importing meat products from Mexico

On this page

1. Meat inspection systems approved

1.1 Bovine (including farmed bison): slaughter, cutting, deboning and edible meat by products, natural salted animal intestinal casings

1.2 Swine (including farmed wild boar): slaughter, cutting, deboning and edible meat by products, natural salted animal intestinal casings

1.3 Poultry: cutting, deboning and edible meat by products from imported poultry into Mexico from Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) approved sources (not originating from Mexico)

1.4 Processing (for meat inspection system(s) approved, and meat and meat products prepared from poultry originating from Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) approved countries and establishments): comminuting, formulating, curing, cooking and canning

2. Types of meat products accepted for import (based on animal health restrictions)

2.1 Fresh meat and raw meat products (chilled or frozen) including bone-in and boneless cuts, edible meat by products, natural salted animal intestinal casings, blood and blood fractions (plasma, clotting factors, cells)

2.1.1 Meat and meat products derived from bovine of Mexican origin – see sections 3.1, 3.2 and 4.1 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required.

2.1.2 Natural salted casings derived from bovine of Mexican origin – see section 3.2 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required.

2.1.3 Blood and blood fractions derived from bovine of Mexican origin – see sections 3.2, 4.3 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required.

2.1.4 Meat and meat products derived from swine of Mexican origin – see section 3.3 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required

2.1.5 Natural salted casings derived from swine of Mexican origin – see section 3.3 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required

2.1.6 Meat and meat products derived from imported meat and meat products originating from CFIA approved countries and establishments – see section 3.4 and 4.4 for additional certification attestations required

2.1.7 Edible Meat by products derived from species with approved meat inspection systems – see sections 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 4.4 and 4.5 for additional certification attestations requirements

2.1.8 Meat and meat products derived from poultry meat imported into Mexico from CFIA approved countries and establishments – see sections 3.5 and 4.4.1 for additional certification attestations required

2.2 All processed meat products (heat treated, raw cured and dried), other than shelf stable commercially sterile meat products packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans or retortable pouches), and shelf stable dried soup-mix products, bouillon cubes and meat extracts

2.2.1 Meat products derived from bovines of Mexican origin, including meat products containing blood and/or blood fractions (for example, sausages, blood pudding) – see sections 3.1, 3.2, 4.2 and 4.3 for additional certification attestations required

2.2.2 Meat products derived from swine of Mexican origin – see section 3.3 for additional certification attestations required

2.2.3 Meat products derived from imported meat and meat products originating from CFIA approved countries and establishments – see section 3.4 for additional certification attestations required

2.2.4 Meat products derived from poultry meat and poultry meat products imported into Mexico from CFIA approved countries and establishments – see sections 3.5 and 4.4.1 for additional certification attestations required

2.3 Shelf stable, commercially sterile meat products packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans and/or retortable pouches), and shelf stable dried soup-mix products, bouillon cubes, meat extracts

2.3.1 Meat products derived from bovines of Mexican origin – see sections 3.1 and 3.2 for additional certification attestations required

2.3.2 Meat products derived from swine of Mexican origin – no additional certification attestations required

2.3.3 Meat products derived from imported meat and meat products originating from CFIA approved countries and establishments – see section 3.4 for additional certification attestations required

2.3.4 Meat products (broths and extracts) which are manufactured in Mexico and that are commercially sterile, such as soup mix products whether hard, dry, nonperishable, bouillon cubes and meat extract – see section 5.1 for additional certification attestations required

3. Additional animal health certification attestations required on the Official Meat inspection Certificate (OMIC)

3.1 For bone in and deboned skeletal muscle meat (excluding mechanically separated meat) derived from bovine of Mexican origin

"I hereby certify that:

3.1.1 The meat and/or meat product were derived from bovines which:

3.1.1.1 Were born and raised in Mexico or have been in Mexico at least 90 days prior to slaughter.

3.1.1.2 Have not been in contact within the last 90 days with any animal from a country or zone not officially recognized freeFootnote 1 of Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD), at the time of slaughter.

3.1.1.3 Have been slaughtered in an establishment located in a country or zone officially recognized freeFootnote 1 of FMD.

3.1.1.4. Were found to be free of any signs suggestive of FMD or any other serious epizootic diseaseFootnote 1 on ante mortem and post mortem inspection.

3.1.1.5 Were not subjected to a stunning process, prior to slaughter, with a device injecting compressed air or gas into the cranial cavity, or to a pithing process involving laceration, after stunning of the animal, of the animal's central nervous tissue by means of an elongated rod-shaped instrument that is introduced into the animal's cranial cavity.

3.1.2 The bone in and deboned skeletal muscle meat has been prepared in a manner to avoid contamination with tissues listed in Article 11.4.14 of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH; founded as Office International des Épizooties (OIE)) Terrestrial Animal Health Code.

3.1.3 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the slaughter, processing and packaging of the meat and meat products with any animal product or by-product derived from bovine of a lesser zoosanitary status."

3.2 For meat and meat products other than listed in section 3.1 derived from bovine of Mexican origin including natural salted intestinal casings, blood and blood fractions, and shelf stable, commercially sterile meat products packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans or retortable pouches), and shelf stable dried soup-mix products, bouillon cubes, meat extracts

"I hereby certify that:

3.2.1 The meat and/or meat product are derived from bovines which:

3.2.1.1 Were born and raised in Mexico or have been in Mexico at least 90 days prior to slaughter.

3.2.1.2 Have not been in contact within the last 90 days with any animal from a country or zone not officially recognized freeFootnote 1 of FMD, at the time of slaughter.

3.2.1.3 Have been slaughtered in an establishment located in a country or zone officially recognized freeFootnote 1 of FMD.

3.2.1.4 Were found to be free of any signs suggestive of FMD or any other serious epizootic diseaseFootnote 1 on ante mortem and post mortem inspection.

3.2.1.5 Were not subjected to a stunning process, prior to slaughter, with a device injecting compressed air or gas into the cranial cavity, or to a pithing process involving laceration, after stunning of the animal, of the animal's central nervous tissue by means of an elongated rod-shaped instrument that is introduced into the animal's cranial cavity.

3.2.2 Mexico complies with conditions of Article 11.4.3 of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) Terrestrial Animal Health Code, and

Either:

3.2.3 The product does not contain any tissues from any imported ruminant born and raised in the first year of its life from a country of controlled or undetermined risk for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) as recognized by Canada,

Or

The product contains tissues from animals imported from countries of controlled BSE risk, and the animals from which the meat and meat products were derived do not contain mechanically recovered meat from the skull and vertebral column of bovine animals aged 30 months or older; AND the meat and meat products do not contain, were not prepared from or were not contaminated with: (i) distal ileum of all ages of bovine animals, and (ii) palatine tonsils, the skull including the brain, trigeminal ganglia and eyes, the spinal cord and the vertebral column (excluding the vertebrae of the tail, the transverse processes of the thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, and the wings of the sacrum), from bovine animals aged 30 months or older,

3.2.4 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the slaughter, processing and packaging of the meat and meat products with any animal product or by-product derived from bovine of a lesser zoosanitary status."

3.3 For meat and meat products derived from swine of Mexican origin, other than shelf stable, commercially sterile pork meat products, packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans or retortable pouches) and shelf stable dried soup mix products, bouillon cubes and meat extracts

"I hereby certify that:

3.3.1 The meat and/or meat product is derived from swine which:

3.3.1.1 Have not been in contact with any animal from a country or zone not officially recognized as free of foot and mouth disease (FMD), African swine fever (ASF), classical swine fever (CSF) and swine vesicular disease (SVD)Footnote 1.

3.3.1.2 Have been slaughtered in an establishment located in a country or zone officially recognized as free of FMD, ASF, CSF, and SVDFootnote 1.

3.3.1.3 Were found to be free of any signs suggestive of CSF, FMD, ASF and SVD or any other serious epizootic diseaseFootnote 1 on ante mortem and post mortem inspection.

3.3.1.4 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the slaughter, processing and packaging of the pork meat with any animal product or by-product derived from animals of a lesser zoosanitary status."

3.4 For meat and meat products prepared from meat and meat products imported into Mexico, including commercially sterilized shelf stable meat products packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans or retortable pouches) and shelf stable dried soup-mix products, bouillon broth cubes and meat extract

"I hereby certify that:

3.4.1 The meat and/or meat product:

3.4.1.1 Was legally imported into Mexico.

3.4.1.2 Meet all Canadian requirements for commercial importation of meat products as listed in Countries from which commercial importation of meat products is permitted, as if they were exported from the country of origin directly to Canada.

3.4.2 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the handling, processing and packaging of the meat product with any animal product or by-product derived from animals of a lesser zoosanitary status.

3.4.3 The meat inspection certificate with which the meat was imported into Mexico is kept on file at the Mexican processing establishment for verification purposes for a minimum of 2 years following the importation."

3.5 For meat and meat products prepared from poultry meat and poultry meat products imported into Mexico, including commercially sterilized shelf stable meat products packaged in hermetically sealed containers (cans or retortable pouches)

"I hereby certify that:

3.5.1 The meat and/or meat product:

3.5.1.1 Was legally imported into Mexico.

3.5.1.2 Meet all Canadian requirements for commercial importation of meat products as listed Countries from which commercial importation of meet products is permitted, as if they were exported from the country of origin directly to Canada.

3.5.1.3 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the handling, processing and packaging of the meat product with any animal product or by-product derived from animals of a lesser zoosanitary status.

3.5.1.4 All meat and meat products covered by this certificate have been derived from animals that were humanely rendered unconscious in a reversible or irreversible manner prior to being bled or were slaughtered in accordance with Judaic or Islamic ritual.

3.5.1.5 The meat products specified above have been prepared in an establishment certified for export to Canada and are derived from animals that have been examined and found, by ante-mortem and post-mortem inspection at the time of slaughter, to be free from disease and that the meat products are suitable in every way for human consumption and are otherwise in compliance with requirements at least equal to those in the applicable Canadian laws and regulations.

3.5.1.6 The meat inspection certificate with which the meat was imported into Mexico is kept on file at the Mexican processing establishment for verification purposes for a minimum of 2 years following the importation."

3.5.2 The poultry meat and/or meat products

3.5.2.1 "Were subjected to a heat treatment process achieving a minimum FO value of 3;

Or

Were subjected to a heat treatment so that an internal core temperature at least of 70ºC or greater was maintained for a minimum of 30 minutes;

Or

Were subjected to a heat treatment to reach an internal core temperature of 80º."

4. Additional, other than animal health, certification attestations required on the OMIC

4.1 For meat and meat products derived from bovine considered as precursor material for the preparation of finished raw ground meat including, but not limited to, trim, bench trim (trim derived from primal and sub-primal cuts), head meat, cheek meat, tongue roots, weasand meat, hearts and finely textured beef

"I hereby certify that:

4.1.1 The meat and/or meat products derived from bovine and covered by this certificate are considered as precursor material for the preparation of finished raw ground meat, and were tested for the presence of E. coli O157:H7/NM according to procedures described in Control Measures for Escherichia coli O157:H7/NM in Raw Beef Products, and

4.1.2 Were tested in a laboratory accredited according to ISO 17025 standards (for example, a laboratory that is formally recognized by an accreditation body that is a signatory to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) as conforming to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2005), and

4.1.3 The test results were recorded on a certificate of analysis indicating that E. coli O157:H7/NM was not detected, and

4.1.4 The said certificate of analysis is issued in one of Canada's official languages (English or French) and attached to this certificate."

4.2 For raw ground meat derived from bovine

"I hereby certify that:

4.2.1 The meat and/or meat products derived from bovine used for the preparation of raw ground meat covered by this certificate were tested for the presence of E. coli O157:H7/NM according to procedures described in Control Measures for Escherichia coli O157:H7/NM in Raw Beef Products, and

4.2.2 Were tested in a laboratory accredited according to ISO 17025 standards (for example, a laboratory that is formally recognized by an accreditation body that is a signatory to the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) Mutual Recognition Agreement (MRA) as conforming to the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025:2005), and

4.2.3 The test results were recorded on a certificate of analysis indicating that E. coli O157:H7/NM was not detected, and

4.2.4 The said certificate of analysis will be kept on file in the processing establishment for a minimum of 2 years period from the date of this certificate."

4.3 For edible blood, edible blood fractions (including plasma, clotting factors, and cells), and edible meat products containing blood and/or blood fractions (for example, sausages, blood pudding) derived from bovine or swine slaughtered in US

"I hereby certify that:

4.3.1 The blood was collected from bovine or swine (strikeout not applicable) using a closed blood collection method such as using a hollow knife or cannula."

4.4 For all meat and meat products

"I hereby certify that:

4.4.1 The meat products covered by this certificate have been derived from animals that were humanely rendered unconscious in a reversible or irreversible manner prior to being bled, or were slaughtered in accordance with Judaic or Islamic ritual."

4.5 For edible meat by products

"I hereby certify that:

4.5.1 The edible meat by products were harvested hygienically and are considered edible by Canadian standards."

5. Additional food safety and animal health certification required for exporting commercially sterile soups and meat extracts

5.1 For meat products which are manufactured in Mexico and that are commercially sterile, such as soup mix products whether hard, dry, nonperishable, bouillon cubes and meat extracts

5.1.1 For meat and / or meat products ingredients:

"I hereby certify that:

5.1.1.1 The country and establishment of origin for the ingredients is approved by the CFIA at the time of export.

5.1.1.2 Is originally from Mexico or was legally imported from a country (described in this certificate); which is listed by Canada as an eligible country from which direct commercial importation of meat products is allowed meeting all Canadian import requirements.

5.1.1.3 Every precaution was taken to prevent direct or indirect contact during the handling, processing and packaging of the meat product with any animal product or by-product derived from animals of a lesser zoosanitary status.

5.1.1.4 For imported raw ingredients, the meat inspection certificate with which the meat was imported into Mexico is kept on file at the Mexican processing establishment for verification purposes for a minimum of 2 years following the importation.

5.1.1.5 The meat products specified above have been prepared in an establishment certified for export to Canada and are derived from animals that have been examined and found, by ante-mortem and post-mortem inspection at the time of slaughter, to be free from disease and that the meat products are suitable in every way for human consumption and are otherwise in compliance with requirements at least equal to those in the applicable Canadian laws and regulations."

5.1.2 For meat raw material and / or meat products of bovine origin:

"I hereby certify that:

5.1.2.1 Have been heat treated to reach a minimum internal temperature of 70°C for a minimum of 30 minutes.

5.1.2.2 Originate from an establishment in the United States that is under the supervision of USDA-FSIS.

Or

Originate from a country of negligible risk for Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE), other than the United States.

5.1.2.3 Originate from cattle, which were not subjected to a stunning process, prior to slaughter, with a device injecting compressed air or gas into the cranial cavity, or to a pithing process involving laceration, after stunning of the animal, of the animal's central nervous tissue by means of an elongated rod-shaped instrument that is introduced into the animal's cranial cavity.

And

Do not contain the skull, brain, trigeminal ganglia, eyes, tonsils, spinal cord and dorsal root ganglia of cattle aged 30 months or older, or the distalileum of cattle of all ages."

5.1.3 For meat raw material and / or meat products of pig origin:

"I hereby certify that:

5.1.3.1 Have been heat treated to a minimum F0 value of 3;

Or

Have been heat treated to reach a minimum internal temperature of 70°C for a minimum of 30 minutes."

5.1.4 For meat raw material and / or meat products of avian origin:

"I hereby certify that:

5.1.4.1 Have been heat treated to a minimum F0 value of 3;

Or

Have been heat treated to reach a minimum internal temperature of 74°C throughout the substance."

6. Establishments eligible for export to Canada

6.1 Refer to the List of foreign countries establishments eligible to export meat products to Canada

Date modified: