Canada’s hog industry is narrowing its options for a national program that could track animals from birth to slaughter.
However, no one can yet say when the traceability program will be put in place because it requires a national registry listing the geographical location of hogs farms across the country.
Getting that in place will take time because it will encompass other commodities, including cattle and poultry.
Mike Dexter, specialist for the Manitoba Pork Council, said creating a registry to suit a range of commodities is a challenge.
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“We have to get something that’s compatible and useful to all the different commodity groups with their special circumstances,” he said.
“There’s a lot to overcome, but we are getting there.”
The hog industry is studying two main traceability options: individual animal identification or tracking the movement of hogs in groups.
AVC Inc. at the University of Prince Edward Island is doing a pilot study on the merits of group tracking. The study, funded by Agriculture Canada and organized by the Canadian Pork Council, involves farmers and processors in Manitoba, Quebec and P.E.I.
“Our hypothesis is that we can efficiently provide traceability without having to specifically identify each animal,” said AVC chief executive officer Wayne Hooper.
“The huge majority of pigs in the country move around as groups. They’ll go from the sow unit to the nursery, from the nursery to the feeder barn and from the feeder barn to the processing plant.”
The idea is that each time a group of hogs is moved, a report of that movement would be submitted to a data collection centre. The shipper and receiver would both submit a report.
Hooper said the study is examining different reporting methods, with one of the goals being a system that is straightforward and affordable.
The national farm registry becomes important because it pinpoints exactly where pigs are so that a traceback can be done quickly in the event of a disease outbreak or a food quality concern.
“When I look at other countries that have gone to traceability, one of the first issues they have to deal with is a registry of farms,” Hooper said.
“You need to know where the animals are.”
A registry committee, established under the Canadian Livestock Identification Agency, is working on a draft document detailing how such a registry might work and when it might be implemented.
Dexter, who is a member of the committee, said the goal is a system that is practical for the livestock industry.
“What we don’t want is a another gun registry,” he said, noting that it is too soon to speculate when the registry might be implemented.
