The US based National Pork Producers Council is expressing its concern over a Health Canada proposal to restrict even more the use of Carbadox in Canada. Carbadox is an antibiotic used to protect against swine dysentery in the nursery phase.
Canada authorized its use in the early 1970’s but in 2001, Health Canada issued a stop sale order on the product and withdrew its drug identification numbers in 2004. Now Health Canada is proposing to restrict its use further, to ensure no residues of the drug or its metabolites end up in pork products.
National Pork Producers Council president Joy Philippi says the approval for Carbadox has been around for 35 years. She’s convinced its 42-day withdrawal period is sufficient to guard against residues. “Carbadox is actually fed in the earlier stages of life for pigs and we know, because of the 42 day withdrawal period, there’s no residue from that drug in the meat at slaughter,” said Philippi. “What’s been brought forward is, whether meat that has been fed Carbadox could go to Canada. If we can not export meat into Canada that’s been fed Carbadox, it’ll have a tremendous impact on the US pork industry as far as our economic viability.”
The NPPC president said if Canada decides to ban the imports of the animal or meat treated with Carbadox, it’s not going to be in accordance with the WTO agreement on the application of sanitary and phytosanitary measures. “It will also be an issue when we talk about the North American FTA and we just don’t feel that it’s necessary to let it go to the length to end up being a trade problem,” she said. Philippi suggests US pork producers would be prepared to accept stricter testing standards but, she insists, to completely eliminate this drug could be really tough on everybody.