USDA APHIS issued a stakeholder alert implementing restrictions on hunter harvested wild bird meat/carcasses from all of Canada, regardless of province, due to the risk of transmitting highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). HPAI is an extremely infectious poultry disease spreading throughout North America, primarily by wild birds. APHIS regulations implement strict import controls to prevent HPAI introductions resulting from people transporting contaminated wildlife meat, carcasses, and trophies into the United States.
APHIS has been working with stakeholders and other federal agencies to provide options for importing hunter-harvested wild bird meat/carcasses that address the HPAI transmission risk to our domestic poultry. Effective September 12, APHIS will allow the import of hunter harvested wild bird meat/carcasses as outlined below.
Unprocessed hunter-harvested wild game bird carcasses, originating from or transiting Canada, must meet following conditions:
- Viscera, head, neck, feet, skin, and one wing have been removed; and
- Feathers have been removed, with the exception of one wing – as required by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for species identification; and
- Carcasses must be rinsed in fresh, clean, potable water prior to packaging and must not have visible evidence of contamination with dirt, blood, or feces; and
- Carcasses must be imported in leak-proof plastic packaging and stored in a leak proof cooler or container during transport and import; and
- Carcasses must be chilled or frozen during transport and import.