(a) APHIS considers foot-and-mouth disease to exist in all regions of the world except those declared free of the disease by APHIS.

(1) A list of regions that APHIS has declared free of foot-and-mouth disease is maintained on the APHIS Web site at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/import__export/animals/animal__disease__status.shtml. Copies of the list will also be available via postal mail, fax, or email upon request to the Sanitary Trade Issues Team, National Center for Import and Export, Veterinary Services, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, 4700 River Road Unit 38, Riverdale, Maryland 20737.

(2) APHIS will add a region to the list of those it has declared free of foot-and-mouth disease after it conducts an evaluation of the region in accordance with §92.2 of this subchapter and finds that the disease is not present. In the case of a region formerly on this list that is removed due to an outbreak, the region may be returned to the list in accordance with the procedures for reestablishment of a region's disease-free status in §92.4 of this subchapter. APHIS will remove a region from the list of those it has declared free of foot-and-mouth disease upon determining that the disease exists in the region based on reports APHIS receives of outbreaks of the disease from veterinary officials of the exporting country, from the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), or from other sources the Administrator determines to be reliable.

(b) The importation of any ruminant or swine or any fresh (chilled or frozen) meat of any ruminant or swine1 that originates in any region where foot-and-mouth disease exists, as designated in paragraph (a) of this section, or that enters a port in or otherwise transits a region in which foot-and-mouth disease exists, is prohibited:

(1) Except as provided in part 93 of this chapter for wild ruminants and wild swine;

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section for fresh (chilled or frozen) meat of ruminants or swine that is otherwise eligible for importation under this part but that enters a port or otherwise transits a region where foot-and-mouth disease exists; and

(3) Except as provided in §94.4 of this part for cooked or cured meat from regions where foot-and-mouth disease exists.

(4) Except as provided in §94.29 for fresh (chilled or frozen) beef and ovine meat.

(c) The importation of any used farm equipment that originates in any region where foot-and-mouth disease exists, as designated in paragraph (a) of this section, is prohibited, unless the equipment is accompanied by an original certificate signed by an authorized official of the national animal health service of the exporting region that states that the equipment, after its last use and prior to export, was steam-cleaned free of all exposed dirt and other particulate matter. Such farm equipment is subject to APHIS inspection at the port of arrival. If it is found during such inspection to contain any exposed dirt or other particulate matter, it will be denied entry into the United States, unless, in the judgment of the APHIS inspector, the amount of exposed soil is minimal enough to allow cleaning at the port of arrival, and there are adequate facilities and personnel at the port to conduct such cleaning without risk of disease contamination.

(d) Except as otherwise provided in this part, fresh (chilled or frozen) meat of ruminants or swine raised and slaughtered in a region free of foot-and-mouth disease, as designated in paragraph (a) of this section, and fresh (chilled or frozen) beef and ovine meat exported in accordance with §94.29, which during shipment to the United States enters a port or otherwise transits a region where foot-and-mouth disease exists, may be imported provided that all of the following conditions are met:

(1) The meat is accompanied by the foreign meat inspection certificate required by §327.4 of this title and, upon arrival of the meat in the United States, the foreign meat inspection certificate is presented to an authorized inspector at the port of arrival;

(2) The meat is placed in the transporting carrier in a hold, compartment, or, if the meat is containerized, in a container that which was sealed in the region of origin by an official of such region with serially numbered seals approved by APHIS, so as to prevent contact of the meat with any other cargo, handling of the meat after the hold, compartment, or container is sealed, and the loading of any cargo into and the removal of any cargo from the sealed hold, compartment, or container en route to the United States;

(3) If any foreign official breaks a seal applied in the region of origin in order to inspect the meat, he or she then reseals the hold, compartment, or container with a new serially numbered seal; and, if any member of a ship's crew breaks a seal, the serial number of the seal, the location of the seal, and the reason for breaking the seal are recorded in the ship's log.

(4) The serial numbers of the seals used to seal the hold, compartment, or container are recorded on the foreign meat inspection certificate which accompanies the meat;

(5) Upon arrival of the carrier in the United States port of arrival, the seals are found by an APHIS representative to be intact, and the representative finds that there is no evidence indicating that any seal has been tampered with; Provided that, if the representative finds that any seal has been broken or has a different number than is recorded on the foreign meat inspection certificate, then the meat may remain eligible for entry into the United States only if APHIS personnel are available to inspect the hold, compartment, or container, the packages of meat, and all accompanying documentation; and the importer furnishes additional documentation (either copies of pages from the ship's log signed by the officer-in-charge, or certification from a foreign government that the original seal was removed and the new seal applied by officials of that government) that demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Administrator that the meat was not contaminated or exposed to contamination during movement from the region of origin to the United States; and

(6) The meat is found by an authorized inspector to be as represented on the foreign meat inspection certificate.

(Approved by the Office of Management and Budget under control numbers 0579-0015 and 0579-0195)

[30 FR 12118, Sept. 23, 1965]