5.2 Cattle and bison born on or after March 1, 1999

Authorization

Veterinarians authorized to certify cattle and bison born on or after March 1, 1999, for export to the U.S. may certify both slaughter and non-slaughter categories of bovine and bison. They are also authorized to certify yak and water buffalo for immediate slaughter and breeding to the U.S. Refer to section 5.2B and 5.2C for this specific purpose.

Veterinarians authorized under these requirements are required to maintain records to document how certification elements have been met for each shipment. These records must be kept for a minimum of 3 years.

Health certification requirements

In both slaughter and non-slaughter categories, the animals must have been

• born in the U.S. or Canada, or were legally imported into Canada from a region recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) as a region not restricted due to Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)
• under no movement restrictions within Canada or the U.S. for at least 60 days prior to export to the U.S.
• inspected and found to be free from any evidence of communicable disease and, as far as it can be determined, must not have been exposed to any such disease during the 60 days immediately preceding the date of shipment
• born on or after March 1, 1999, which is the date determined by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (APHIS) to be the effective enforcement of a ruminant-to-ruminant feed ban
• not be in quarantine in Canada
• in Canada in a period during which the country has been free from foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, surra (trypanosomiasis), and contagious bovine pleuropneumonia
• individually identified with an approved Canadian ear tag or any tag deemed equivalent under the livestock identification and traceability program
• for yak and water buffalo only, identified with an electronic tag and numbering format explicitly mentioned on the export certificate, applied prior to each animal's entry into the U.S.
• inspected and certified for export within 30 days of date of export by an accredited veterinarian

Age determination and certification

The following tools for aging are available to the Accredited Veterinarian (AV). The choice of method rests with the AV, based on their due diligence and professional veterinary judgement. A record of the methods employed in determining the age of cattle or bison is to be maintained for each shipment certified by an AV.

Records of the method used must be kept for 3 years for audit purposes (such as a note written on the copy of the export certificate retained by the AV). Information about measures employed for aging is to be made available to Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) upon request.

Any animal that in the professional opinion of the AV may be older than the March 1, 1999 birth date, based on visual appraisal, dentition, or reviews of producer records, is to be removed from the shipment and is not eligible for export.

• Visual inspection
  It is recognized that an experienced veterinary practitioner is able to estimate the age of cattle (based on breed characteristic knowledge). The accredited veterinarian is often knowledgeable about the herds of origin of the cattle to be exported, such as from beef feedlots or veal operations.

  Visual inspection should only be used as a sole method for a shipment when the accredited veterinarian is confident that the animals were born on or after March 1, 1999. If there is any concern that the animal(s) being inspected were born prior to March 1, 1999 the AV should choose option b or c (below) for age verification.

• Producer records
  Acceptable records can include birth record, Attestra (Québec) (formerly Agri-traçabilité Québec (ATQ)) database birth date record, purebred registration certificate, Canadian Cattle Identification Agency (CCIA) database birth date record, farm birth records or other record such as purchase receipt or medical records.

  This method can also include information known to the AV such as ID tags of specific colour/letter being from a specific year or ear tattoo letters. These and other documents are supporting evidence that may be acceptable to the accredited veterinarian indicating the animal was born on or after March 1, 1999.

• Dentition
  Animals may be exported to the U.S. after inspection of dentition, provided that the animal appears to be at, or under, 10 to 12 years of age as per the following diagram and description. Animals with no visible incisors and/or missing molars ("gummers") should be aged using another method.

Diagram 1: front view of incisors up to 120 months of age (10 years)

Extracted from: Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) Notice 5-04, January 12, 2004

The rounded arch of the incisors gradually becomes nearly straight by 12 years of age in cattle. The teeth become more triangular, distinctly separated, and show progressive wearing to stubs. As cattle continue to age, the teeth wear shorter, and more neck becomes visible; the crown disappears in most teeth, and they loosen in the sockets and eventually drop out.

Note:

• as of November 2017, the United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (USDA-APHIS) has agreed to no longer require the individual ages of exported animals in the annex of the certificate for cattle for immediate slaughter
• cattle or bison must not bear a light blue, Allflex, tamper proof, dangle tag in their left ear, marked with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency acronym (CFIA/ACIA) and a 4-digit number, as these animals cannot be certified for export to any country

Additional certification requirements and procedures for non-slaughter category (breeding, shows, feeders, etc.)

Cattle exported on the HA1941 export of cattle or bison to the United States certificate must

• be permanently and humanely identified with a distinct and legible "C^N" mark that has been applied with a freeze brand or hot iron, that is easily visible on the live animal
  • apply the mark to each animal's right hip, high on the tail-head and not less than 2 inches nor more than 3 inches high; or
• bear a legible tattoo of the letters "CAN" applied to the inside of the left ear
  • tattoo pliers recommended by a manufacturer for use in cattle should be used for tattoo application; or
• be permanently and humanely identified by any other alternative method approved by the USDA before the shipment reaches the port of entry into the U.S.

Note: cattle imported into Canada from the U.S. under the "Restricted Feeders" program are eligible for re-export for non-slaughter end use (for example, feeding). These animals do not require the CAN tattoo / brand provided that they bear a "USA" brand/tattoo (regardless of legibility) and the original "840" U.S. approved tag they were imported with. If there is no USA brand / tattoo and/or the original "840" tag has been replaced with a Canadian "124" tag, then the CAN tattoo/brand marking must be applied.

Note: permanent marking as described above is not required for bison, if they meet additional identification requirements. In addition to the approved radio frequency identification (RFID) tag, bison that do not have a permanent marking as described above must bear in the opposite ear a secondary dangle tag (available from the Canadian Bison Association) bearing the same official identification number as the approved RFID tag. Hand written tags are not acceptable.

Cattle and bison exported on the HA1941 export cattle or bison to the United States of America certificate must

• originate from a brucellosis-free province or territory or from a brucellosis-free herd

• have continuously resided in a tuberculosis (Mycobacterium bovis) free province or territory or region in Canada, or their U.S. equivalent (for example, tuberculosis accredited free or modified accredited advanced State) or originate from a tuberculosis free herd

  Note: tuberculosis testing protocol.

  Testing must be performed in accordance with CFIA's Bovine Tuberculosis Manual of Procedures. Consult module 3.1 Tuberculosis testing. Accredited veterinarians must immediately report all Caudal fold tuberculin (CFT) reactors to the CFIA and all CFT reactors must be tested by a CFIA veterinarian with the ancillary comparative cervical tuberculin test (CCT). The CCT must be performed no later than 10 days after the CFT injection. The CFT negative animals that were in contact with the CFT reactor will not be eligible for export until the CFT reactor has been confirmed negative with the ancillary test. Please note that even if they tested negative to the CCT, CFT reactors are permanently ineligible for export to the U.S. and cannot be retested at a later date. This protocol must be followed for all CFT reactors, including those that were tested in order to comply with a States requirement.

• be accompanied by the original and 2 photocopies of the export certificate
• contrary to slaughter animals, 1 export certificate per truck is required
• USDA APHIS will allow up to a maximum of 3 conveyances per export certificate provide the following are met:
  • cattle are not exported for the end use of Breeding (Feeding only)
  • individual animal IDs are uploaded by the U.S. importer or designee into the USDA Veterinary Services Process Streamlining service prior to departure
  • all conveyances remain at the port of entry until the entire shipment has been cleared

Specific certification requirements and procedures for slaughter category

Cattle and bison certified for slaughter in the U.S. on HA2183 do not require tattoos, brands, or other identification, as described in section 3.1 in this module

The certificate HA2183, as described below, requires the entry of specific statements concerning the routing of shipments to slaughter

A shipment of animals to direct slaughter may consist of animals from a single place of export that are transported in several vehicles that will proceed to the same U.S. destination

• the trucks must cross the border at the same location on the same working day
• the specific number of animals in each truck must be recorded by the agent/owner/exporter on the annex page before departure

For routine exports, the maximum number of conveyances per health certificate is 3

For exporters that are approved by the USDA under the "Trusted Traders" program, there may be an unlimited number of conveyances per health certificate, but the same requirements to cross at the same location on the same working day apply

• accredited veterinarians must verify if exporters are approved as "Trusted Traders" before certifying more than 3 conveyances on a health certificate either through the exporters themselves or by contacting their local CFIA district office

For shipments of slaughter animals of several truck loads, the first truck in the shipment requires the original certificate signed and endorsed by the CFIA official veterinarian, plus 2 copies

Subsequent trucks require 3 copies of the Canadian health certificate, 1 of which must bear a red CFIA export seal on every page

How to complete the Canadian health certificate

The accredited veterinarian must use the most recent version of the HA1941/HA2183.

• a copy of the certificate is available through a CFIA district office

The port of entry must be indicated on both certificates (HA2183 and HA1941)

• when completing the HA2183 Export of Cattle or Bison for Immediate Slaughter to the United States of America certificate, the routing of the shipment must be based on information provided by the exporter
• the routing starts at the U.S. port of entry and must include all main roads to be followed in the U.S.

No strikeouts are required on the certificate, with the exception of selecting cattle or bison on the HA2183, as appropriate in the line just above the signature block at the bottom of the first page of the certificate

The total number of animals inspected and listed on the certificate is to be placed in the blank next to the line mentioned above

The annex of the certificate (identification page) may be substituted with a list of animals containing the same information as this page, including the number of animals in the truck

• the reference number is to be recorded at the top of each page, and all pages are to be numbered
• an export stamp and the accredited veterinarian initials are required on every page, and the last page must bear a completed date and signature block for both the accredited veterinarian and the CFIA veterinarian in the same manner as it appears in the annex itself
• in addition, the statement blocks stating the number of animals in the truck and the name of the agent/owner/exporter must also appear on the substituted last page in the same manner as in the annex

The accredited veterinarian must assure that the identification of animals on the certificate matches the identification of animals that were inspected for export.

An export manifest is available on the website of the Canadian Cattle Identification Agency and Attestra (Québec)

If being used, birth dates are automatically recorded if present in the database

The "row" column is only a sequential numerical entry (1, 2, 3, …), its purpose is to facilitate discussions between the USDA and the CFIA when they have questions about 1 or many animals

Approved tags bear a unique identification number

• the identification numbers of tags approved for cattle start with "124 000 0", "124 000 1" or "124 000 2"
• other tags that are considered equivalent under the livestock identification and traceability program that start with "840" are also acceptable as official identification
• approved tags for bison start with "124 000 300" to "124 000 304"

Note: although it is not a USDA requirement that the ear tag numbers be listed in ascending numerical order on the certificate, accredited veterinarians are encouraged to complete the certificates in this manner. This practice will facilitate inspection at the U.S. port of entry and minimize delays.

In the column "age" (not applicable to HA2183), record the actual birth date of each animal if a birth record is available; if not, the year of birth is sufficient as long as it is not 1999

• if age is determined by dentition or visual inspection, an estimate in years may be used
• the date format must be indicated at the top of the annex
• this format must be consistent throughout the certificate

The accredited veterinarian must complete the export health certificate by entering all the necessary information

• the "reference number" is assigned by the CFIA district office
• the completed and signed health certificate (including name in block capitals) will be submitted to CFIA for review, and if all requirements are met, it will be endorsed
• any incomplete export certificates will be returned to the accredited veterinarian for completion
• a fee is charged for CFIA endorsement
• once endorsed, certificates are returned to the accredited veterinarian or the exporter
• the health certificate is valid for 30 days from the date of inspection

Note: the USDA have confirmed that they do not require an original signature from the accredited veterinarian on the export certificates HA1941, HA2183 and HA2610. Therefore, accredited veterinarians may choose to transmit these certificates for endorsement to the CFIA district office according to the regular method described in module 4.1 (personal or sealed envelope delivery), or transmit these export certificates by fax or electronically as long as the following conditions are met:

• accredited veterinarians who wish to send export certificates to a district office via fax or email must first inform the district veterinarian of their intention and must provide the fax number or the email address that will be used
  • only fax numbers or email addresses associated with the issuing accredited veterinarian will be accepted
• certificates received by fax or electronically must be printed on legal size paper
  • before signing these certificates, endorsing CFIA veterinarians will ascertain that they contain a valid issuing signature and that it originated from an approved fax or email address
• the USDA has confirmed that certificates bearing a copy of the accredited veterinarian's signature will be accepted by their port of entry veterinarians
  • they must still bear an original stamp and an original signature from the CFIA veterinarian

Drawing a line to indicate the same data between a column of animals is acceptable for the following columns: age (not applicable to HA2183), sex, breed and description

• the information must be completed for the first animal and the last animal in the group

There can be up to 20% more animals on the export certificate than what is actually being exported

• no strikeouts are necessary for the animals not loaded, but the owner/agent/exporter must record, on the day of shipment, the number of animals in each truck in the designated spot on each copy of the certificate that will accompany that truck

For example, if an exporter expects to send a truck of 45 animals, approximately 9 to 10 animals in excess could be added on the certificate as "reserve animals". If he expects to send a shipment of 4 trucks (4 × 45 animals, depending on the age and the size), approximately 36 animals could be recorded in excess on the certificate.

Where brucellosis or tuberculosis testing has been completed, a copy of the test chart and results of test must be presented to the CFIA district office at the time that the export certificate is endorsed by a CFIA veterinarian

• refer to sections 3.1 Tuberculosis Testing and 3.2 Serologic Testing of this manual for information on required reporting of tuberculin tests and on submission of serum samples to CFIA accredited laboratories for brucellosis testing

Inspections at U.S. ports of entry

Cattle exported, other than for immediate slaughter, should be normally unloaded at the U.S. port of entry for individual inspection at the discretion of the USDA veterinarian

For bison, if no satisfactory handling installations are available at the border, a USDA veterinarian will provide an inspection at their final destination in the U.S.

For calves under the age of 21 days, pre-shipment approval is required from the destination United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Service (VS) Port Office. The importer must notify VS at the port of entry at least 7 days in advance of the proposed shipment, providing the address of the destination premises and the scheduled date and time of arrival. Port VS staff will verify that personnel are available to perform the inspection of the calves on the proposed date of arrival. Once approved, the port VS staff will immediately notify the importer of the approval and schedule an appointment at the port for clearance. The shipment will not be allowed entry without advance approval. Trucks will be sealed at the port of entry for inspection at the destination premises.

Trucks transporting slaughter animals will be sealed at the U.S. port of entry for direct movement to the designated slaughterhouse

The animals must be presented at the U.S. port of entry by appointment

The shipment must be accompanied by U.S. Veterinary Services Form 17-29 Declaration of Importation and the official Canadian health certificate (HA1941 or HA2183)

Refer to section 5.1 General for the list of land ports of entry designated as having the necessary inspection facilities for the entry of animals from Canada

• although this list was provided by the USDA, it is the exporters' responsibility to present their animals to a U.S. port of entry that has the facilities required for the unloading and inspection of such animals

5.2A Export to the U.S. – certification requirements of cattle and bison for multi-shipments

Export of cattle and bison with different export certificates in the same truck

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) allows the export of cattle and bison using multiple export certificates. Please adhere to the following rules.

It is possible to export animals in the same truck using multiple certificates. However, there is 1 basic rule: this is possible only for animals of the same category. That is to say animals going to direct slaughter (HA2183) can never be mixed with feeder/breeder/show animals (HA1941).

Breeding animals must be exported in 1 truck only. Feeder animals may be exported in multiple trucks, up to a maximum of 3 conveyances as per section 3.2 above.

Animals going to direct slaughter must all go to the same destination since the truck is sealed at the U.S. border.

It is possible to put feeder/breeder/show animals not going to the same destination in the same truck, as long as they all have a valid export certificate specifying the final destination.

It is possible to assemble animals in the same truck even if they are not coming from the same exporter.

Animals don't need to be assembled in 1 place; the truck can make multiple pickups.

Animals exported under different export certificates may be commingled in the truck; the USDA doesn't require the different groups to be separated. However, in the case of direct to slaughter animals, the exporter should check with the slaughterhouse (management and/or the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS)) that they agree with this procedure.

The number listed by the agent/owner/exporter on their health certificate should be the number of animals they loaded from their specific certificate, not a grand total for all certificates.

As usual, it is the responsibility of the exporter and/or accredited veterinarian to ensure that the State(s) of destination or slaughterhouse agree with multiple shipments in 1 truck.

Exporters must be aware that the whole truck may be refused if a problem is found with a part of the truckload so this method may be more at risk than single load shipments

Cattle and bison from different locations exported on the same export certificate

Because of the trace-back possibilities provided by the Canadian Cattle National Identification System, the USDA accepts that animals coming from different farms/assembly points be put on the same certificate as long as:

• the exporter is the same for all animals
• the importer and destination are the same for all animals
• the accredited veterinarian is the same for all animals

The certificate HA1941 for the export of cattle or bison to the U.S. will not change for the moment. There is no need to record the different places of origin on the export certificate or on a separate sheet.

The certificate HA2183 for the export of cattle or bison for immediate slaughter gives the possibility of recording different places of origin, thus every physical location where the animals are exported from should be recorded on the certificate.

Previously imported bob calves re-exported to the U.S. for immediate slaughter

For animals imported from the United States under part III, section 17 of the Import Reference Document on feeder calves, and re-exported with export certificate HA2610, the above instructions do not apply completely since the animals are placed in quarantine upon arrival in Canada.

Bob calves from different locations may be assembled in 1 shipment as long as they all belong to the same exporter

If an exporter wants to export bob calves under quarantine with other groups in the same truck, it must be clearly written on the transport license that the exporter has been given the permission to mix the different groups together

In the case where such shipment would be refused at the border, the exporter must have a contingency plan for quarantining all these animals in a place(s) that has/have been pre-approved for this purpose by the CFIA district staff

5.2B Export to the U.S. – certification requirements of yak and water buffalo for immediate slaughter

The Export certificate HA2951 Yak and Water Buffalo for Immediate Slaughter to the United States of America must be used. A copy of the certificate is available through a CFIA district office.

All inspection and certification procedures described in the section above related to bovine exported for slaughter are applicable to the certification of yak and water buffalo for immediate slaughter except for the following:

• there are no official approved electronic tags for yak or water buffalo
• they must either be identified with

  • 2 ear tags readable at a distance, 1 being an electronic tag using the alphanumerical format CAN-Provincial Premise ID-Individual animal number (refer to 5.2C below for details), and a second dangle tag, preferably repeating the last 4 or 5 digits of the electronic ID

    Note: electronic tags on yak or water buffalo must not bear logos of existing approved tags (for example: CCIA ¾ maple leaf, DairyTrace or PigTrace)

    or

    a Health of Animals tag. Refer to section 2.1 Identification of livestock.

• age determination: only visual inspection and birth records (including birth farm records) as described above for bovine and bison can be used to determine the age of these animals.
• dentition cannot be used
• the age of the animals must be listed on the certificate

5.2C Export to the U.S. – certification requirements of yak and water buffalo for feeding and breeding

The Export certificate HA3171 yak and water buffalo for breeding or feeding to the United States of America must be used. A copy of the certificate is available through a CFIA district office.

All inspection and certification procedures described in the section above related to bovine exported for non slaughter categories are applicable to the certification of yak and water buffalo for feeding or breeding except for the following:

• there are no approved tags for yak or water buffalo
  • see below for the identification requirements for their export to the United States
• age determination: only visual inspection and birth records (including birth farm records) as described above for bovine and bison can be used to determine the age of animal
• dentition cannot be used
• the age of the animals must be listed on the certificate
• animals are isolated and held apart by a minimum distance of 10 meters from the rest of the herd and other livestock for a period of at least 60 days prior to the date of exportation to the U.S.
• all animals while in isolation have tested negative to:
  • a brucellosis test using a Serum Agglutination or enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assays (ELISA) or Complement Fixation and
  • on a caudal fold test for tuberculosis performed no more than 30 days prior to presentation at the port of arrival to the U.S.
• animals are inspected within 3 days (72 hours) prior to start of loading for exportation to the U.S. and found be free from any evidence of communicable disease and that, as far as can be determined, they have not been exposed to any such disease during the preceding 60 days

Note: animals must be traceable to the herd of origin (that is where they were born), so accredited veterinarians must be satisfied through farm records that animals exported can be traced before certifying them for export.

Identification of yak and water buffalo for the purpose of export to the United States for slaughter, breeding or feeding

Yak and water buffalo must be individually identified using both an RFID/ ultra-high frequency (UHF) tag and a unique secondary tag that is readable at a distance (for example a large button or dangle tag). The RFID/ UHF tag must:

• follow the alphanumerical format CAN-Provincial Premise ID-Individual animal number (Example: CAN-00000000-0001)
• not bear logos of existing approved tags (for example: CCIA ¾ maple leaf , DairyTrace or PigTrace)

Provincial premise ID numbers can be found on each province's Premises ID website:

• Alberta
  Telephone: toll-free within Alberta 310-FARM (3276)
• British Columbia
  Telephone: 1-888-221-7141
• Manitoba
  Telephone: 1-204-945-7684
• New Brunswick
  Telephone: 1-506-453-2109
• Newfoundland and Labrador
  Telephone: 1-709-637-2088
• Nova Scotia
  Telephone: 1-800-279-0825
• Ontario
  Telephone: 1-855-697-7743
• Prince Edward Island
  Telephone: 1-866-PEI-FARM
• Quebec
  Telephone: 1-866-270-4319
• Saskatchewan
  Telephone: 1-866-457-2377
• Yukon
  Telephone: 1-867-667-3043

Exporters must arrange for the manufacture of unique identification tags bearing the acceptable alphanumeric format from commercial tag manufacturers.