SWITZERLAND-PORK BANS.
GENEVA — Up to 20 countries worldwide have banned imports of pork and other meat in response to an outbreak of a new flu virus, according to documents from the World Health Organization.
Although the H1N1 strain is not food-borne, fears that it may spread through animal products have prompted restrictions on live pigs, pork, cattle, poultry, livestock, feed and animal semen from countries with reported infections, according to the list obtained by Reuters yesterday.
Canadian authorities on Saturday also reported the presence of the virus in a swine herd, which was apparently infected by a farm worker who had been to Mexico. That caused the WHO to call for extra caution in handling live animals.
The WHO’s pork import restriction list was compiled from official statements and media reports. Countries identified as having imposed bans include Russia, China, Croatia, Indonesia, Thailand and Ecuador.
Global trade in pork meat is worth about $26 billion a year.
The three countries most affected by the bans — Mexico, the United States and Canada — are among the world’s top pork exporters along with the European Union, Brazil, Chile, China and Hong Kong.
Other countries whose exports would be blocked by the bans include New Zealand, Spain, France, Israel, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Panama, Honduras, Guatemala and the Dominican Republic.