AHC News and Updates

The introduction of African swine fever (ASF) to Canada would have such a devastating effect on the swine industry that a multi-faceted project, the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on African Swine Fever, was initiated in 2019. The collaborative plan lays the groundwork for a timely and coordinated response to reduce the size of an outbreak and limit its impact.

The Plan includes four pillars for action to mitigate the risks of ASF:

  1. Enhanced biosecurity and prevention
  2. Preparedness planning
  3. Ensure business continuity
  4. Coordinated risk communications


AN UNPRECEDENTED COLLABORATION

An ASF Executive Management Board was established to bring together federal/provincial/territorial governments and industry (FPTI) representatives to provide guidance and to prioritize activities under the Pan-Canadian Action Plan on ASF.

Under their guidance, a number of working groups and subgroups work together to deliver solutions that enhance the ASF prevention and response planning and preparedness activities under the four pillars of the Plan.

Animal Health Canada is honoured to coordinate Canada’s ASF planning, preparedness, and readiness for response.

Below are some top accomplishments completed in the past few years. Download PDF here.

Canadian Swine Biosecurity Guideline
Updated biosecurity guideline outlining the latest best practices in biosecurity, providing comprehensive guidance for producers, swine health professionals, and industry partners. It includes an extensive list of recommended biosecurity measures and offers benchmark assessment tools to support ongoing on-farm biosecurity improvements.

Biosecurity Benchmark Tools
Biosecurity assessment tools designed to assist producers in evaluating the effectiveness of on-farm biosecurity measures, covering external, internal, and containment biosecurity.

Biosecurity toolkit
Developed a Biosecurity ToolKit on the importance of implementing biosecurity measures for the prevention of ASF. Includes posters, videos on biosecurity.

Mandatory border training
Implemented border services officer mandatory training on the impact of African swine fever.

Detector dog teams
Added 23 new detector dog teams across Canada to detect undeclared food, plant and animal products that could pose a risk of introducing ASF into Canada.

Canada’s Invasive Wild Pig Strategy
Completed Canada’s Invasive Wild Pig Strategy. The evergreen document is a 10-year strategy that provides Canada-wide leadership to facilitate eradication of invasive wild pigs.

CFIA’s ASF-Hazard Specific Plan
CFIA’s ASF-Hazard Specific Plan (ASF-HSP) is current and ready to be implemented in the event of an ASF emergency.

Tabletop exercises
Designed and facilitated 16 tabletop exercises to validate preparedness plans and response capabilities involving government and industry.

Large-scale, multi-stakeholder exercise
AHC organized a large-scale, multi-stakeholder exercise for November 2024 to work through key elements of the ASF response.

Integrated Emergency Response Plan Framework for ASF
Developed the Integrated Emergency Response Plan (IERP) Framework for ASF and the associated gaps report.

CanSpotASF Surveillance Program
Created the CanSpotASF program, an early detection surveillance program for ASF in Canada.
• Risk-based early detection testing at approved laboratories
• Risk based early detection condemnation testing at abattoirs
• Launched a wild pig surveillance tool in July 2024

Canadian Swine Depopulation Method Reference document
Drafted the Canadian Swine Depopulation Method Reference document.

Movement Risk Mitigation Recommendations
Drafted the Movement Risk Mitigation Recommendations in an ASF situation in Canada.

Surplus Swine Depopulation Plan
The Hog Supply Working Group, comprised of federal/provincial/territorial governments and industry, developed the Surplus Swine Depopulation Plan, and identified additional surplus hog response options that take into consideration all segments of the pork supply chain.

ASF zoning standards
Established ASF zoning standards and shared requirements with FPTI stakeholders. Zoning standards are outlined in the CFIA’s HSP for ASF.

Compartmentalization Program
The groundwork for creating a national ASF compartmentization program is complete, providing a solid foundation for moving ahead with implementation.

AAFC’s African Swine Fever Industry Preparedness Program
Established the ASF-IPP funding program to support the industry in addressing gaps in prevention and mitigation efforts and for the tools, partnerships, and activities to ensure early detection and effective emergency response.

Model for Shared Costs
Initiated the development of a Model for Shared Costs in the Event of Foreign Animal Disease Outbreak.

Information flow
Created a notifications pathway to map the information flow process from African swine fever suspicion to 24 hours post announcement to align on points of accountability and dependencies between organizations.

ASF Emergency Communication Guide
An ASF Emergency Communication Guide is under development to ensure ASF prevention messaging is consistent among FPTI stakeholders.

Contact list
Established communication contact lists, shared and regularly updated.

Traveller awareness campaign
Created Don’t Pack Pork traveller awareness campaign to help prevent African swine fever entry into Canada.

Communications resources for project/ programs
Developed and shared resources on topics such as:

  • Producer awareness and biosecurity
  • Food safety awareness
  • Emergency response /Communications logistics