The United States plans to declare a protective zone around the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands in response to the looming threat of African Swine Fever (ASF).
These pieces of U.S. territory in the Atlantic Ocean lie just about a hundred kilometers from the Dominican Republic and Haiti, where ASF appeared for the first time last month.
Establishing a recognized protective area for foreign animal diseases is a measure recommended by the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). With such recognized "regionalization," the U.S. mainland could maintain its current ‘clean’ ASF status, even if the disease were to emerge in Puerto Rico.
Once the OIE approves the requested protective zone(s), U.S. authorities will need to ensure that other countries also recognize this status. This could enable the U.S. to continue its lucrative pork exports to China.
ASF does not even need to reach the mainland to halt U.S. pork exports. If ASF crosses the short distance from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico, according to international standards, countries worldwide would have the right to ban imports of all U.S. pork.
This is because the OIE currently does not differentiate between ‘country’ and ‘territory.’ This means that if ASF is reported in Puerto Rico, the entire U.S. would officially be considered ‘positive,’ even though the island is a thousand miles away.
It remains unclear whether countries like China or Mexico would actually prohibit imports of U.S. pork, but the mere possibility is sending chills through the pork industry.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture states that a potential export ban would be unjustified, but there are fears that some countries may seek an excuse to stop U.S. imports.