Minister MacAulay announces funding to support Canadian hog producers in the event of a potential African swine fever outbreak

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Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada

Mar 07, 2025, 18:54 ET

OTTAWA, ON, March 7, 2025 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada is committed to protecting the resilience of Canada's rural communities and the Canadian pork sector by supporting prevention efforts and preparing to respond in the event of an African Swine Fever (ASF) outbreak. Today, the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, announced a commitment of up to $567.16 million to support hog producers should there be a closure of key export markets for Canadian pork products and live pigs due to an ASF outbreak in Canada or the United States.

While Canada remains free of ASF, a single detection of ASF in Canada would close export markets due to international trade regulations and import restrictions imposed by trading partners. Canada is heavily dependent on pork and live pig exports, and the closure of key export markets would be devastating to the pork sector. It would cause hog producers to incur extraordinary costs and force them to make difficult decisions about depopulating their herds.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada will work collaboratively with individual provinces and territories to develop agreements. Once agreements are signed, the overall commitment may increase to reflect 60:40 cost-shared funding with provincial and territorial partners.

Today's funding commitment is part of a larger overall effort. Other actions to prevent, prepare for, and mitigate an ASF outbreak include:

  • The African Swine Fever Industry Preparedness Program (ASFIPP) provided $15.5 million to 28 recipients for 44 projects to fund early detection efforts and an effective emergency response in case of an ASF outbreak.
  • At ports of entry, additional measures have been implemented to prevent ASF from entering Canada, including more detector dog teams and the strategic allocation of Canada Border Services Agency officers to examine goods arriving from affected countries. There are also increased import control measures to prevent infected plant-based feed ingredients from ASF-affected countries from entering Canada and declared secondary control zones for plant-based feed ingredients at marine ports of entry.  
  • To reach travellers and small-scale producers, there are ongoing awareness campaigns.
  • Canada is working closely with our North American partners and counterparts to harmonize testing protocols, share intelligence and take collective action from a pan-North American perspective.
  • Canada is actively engaged in ASF research, with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency's (CFIA) National Centre for Foreign Animal Disease, working alongside countries where ASF is endemic to study new strains of the virus, while also collaborating with VIDO-InterVac, the United States Department of Agriculture, and private companies to develop and test vaccine candidates and antivirals for ASF. 
  • The CFIA has established zoning arrangements with the United States, the European Union, Hong Kong, Singapore and Vietnam, and they are pursuing arrangements with other trading partners.
  • The Government of Canada and PTs continue to engage with the sector on needs that would arise in the event of an ASF outbreak.

Quotes

"Thanks to the hard work of our pork producers, Canada is able to provide top-quality pork to Canadians and folks around the world, with exports shipped to nearly 80 countries. With this funding commitment, we're making sure we support hog producers in the event of an outbreak, while we work to contain the virus quickly and regain access to our key export markets."
        -       The Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food

"We appreciate the support and the partnership of the Government of Canada, and of our provincial government partners, as we all work together to prepare for a potential ASF event. Today's announcement is an important step in that preparation, and we look forward to continuing to find solutions to prevent this disease from reaching our shores. With this announcement, we know that if the disease hit our country, governments will be with pork producers from coast to coast to face the challenges of business continuity – this support significantly reduces the stress of our producers."
       -       René Roy, Chair, Canadian Pork Council

Quick Facts

  • ASF does not affect people, pets and other animals, as there is no evidence they can be infected with the virus.
  • ASF continues to spread globally. Since 2018, ASF has spread across Asia, Europe, and most recently, the Caribbean in 2021.
  • Preventing and preparing for foreign animal diseases such as ASF is a shared concern. The federal, provincial and territorial governments, and industry, each have responsibilities to prevent and prepare for ASF and respond to any potential outbreak.
  • The Government of Canada is part of the African Swine Fever Executive Management Board, which is chaired by Animal Health Canada, and has representation from federal, provincial, and territorial governments, and industry.
  • The Canadian pork industry exports roughly two-thirds of its pork production and millions of live pigs per year. In 2024, Canada exported about 1.4 million tonnes of pork products and over 6.8 million live pigs.
  • The Canadian pork sector is vital to Canada's economy and rural communities, contributing an estimated 100,000 direct and indirect jobs, and generating over $24 billion per year.
  • The federal funding commitment is until March 31, 2029. The funding will be available to hog producers at the onset of an ASF outbreak and the subsequent twelve months. 

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Contacts: For media: Annie Cullinan, Director of Communications, Office of the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, [email protected]; Media Relations, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, Ottawa, Ontario, 613-773-7972, 1-866-345-7972, [email protected]

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