Foot-and-Mouth Disease Restrictions for Animal Commodities Originating from or Transiting Hungary and Slovakia, and/or Austria

Import Alert: Foot-and-Mouth Disease Restrictions for Animal Commodities Originating from or Transiting Hungary and Slovakia, and/or Austria

Effective Dates: 

• February 2, 2025, for Hungary and Slovakia; and 
• February 24, 2025, for Austria

 NOTE: On March 7, 2025, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Veterinary Services (VS) issued an import alert restricting importation of certain animal commodities originating from or transiting Hungary and Slovakia based on the confirmation of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in cattle in Hungary on a premises located approximately 1 mile from the border with Slovakia. Since then, Slovakia has confirmed FMD detection in Slovakia, and Hungary has confirmed additional detections in Hungary including on a premises located approximately 4 miles from the Hungary/Austria border. APHIS is hereby updating the March 7, 2025, import alert to include Austria.

Restrictions
Live ruminants, camelids, swine, hedgehogs, tenrecs, dogs, horses:
APHIS prohibits the importation of live ruminants, camelids, swine, hedgehogs, tenrecs, and their germplasm originating from or transiting Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria. 
APHIS will permit the importation of dogs from Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria if their fur and bedding is free of excessive dirt, hay, or straw. The dog should be bathed as soon as it reaches its destination and kept separate from all livestock for five days after entering the United States.   
Horses from Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria, including horses that have contact with horses from Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria at any time within the five days of residency in Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria (including transport and in holding facilities), must complete FMD mitigations. This includes no direct or indirect contact with domestic or wild ruminants or swine for a minimum of five days before entering the USDA quarantine facility and pre-export decontamination of horses, their hooves, and accompanying equipment, as well as additional decontamination in an APHIS-approved import quarantine facility upon arrival. Horses transiting Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria will be required to complete the FMD protocol upon arrival. Please note that horses that have resided in an FMD-free country for a minimum of five days after residing in Hungary, Slovakia, and/or Austria do not need to complete the FMD protocol

Processed porcine, ruminant, camelid, hedgehog, and tenrec products and by-products (including milk):

• Milk/milk products must be accompanied by a VS import permit and government certification confirming that the milk/milk products were treated in accordance with APHIS requirements. 
• If arriving as cargo, must be accompanied by VS import permit and/or government certification confirming that the products or by-products were treated in accordance with APHIS requirements. 

• If arriving in passenger baggage, 
• must be shelf stable as a result of APHIS-approved packaging and cooking (for example, packed in hermetically sealed containers and fully cooked by a commercial method after such packing to produce articles that are shelf stable without refrigeration), OR 
• must be accompanied by a VS import permit and/or government certification confirming that the products or by-products were treated in accordance with APHIS requirements.

Unprocessed porcine, ruminant, camelid, hedgehog, and tenrec products and by-products (including milk):

• Milk/milk products are prohibited.

• If arriving as cargo, importation is prohibited with limited exceptions. In some cases, eligible unprocessed porcine, ruminant, and camelid products and by-products can be imported if consigned directly from the port of arrival to an eligible USDA-approved establishment.  

• If arriving in passenger baggage, importation is prohibited, except for trophies that are fully taxidermy finished or consigned directly to an eligible USDA-approved establishment. 

More information                                                                                                                                                                        

More information is available on the APHIS website: 

• Specific information about live animal import requirements for all species regulated by APHIS VS can be found on Bringing Live Animals and Germplasm into the United States From Another Country (Import) website. https://www.aphis.usda.gov/live-animal-import

• Specific information about animal product import requirements for commodities regulated by APHIS VS can be found on the Animal Product Imports website https://www.aphis.usda.gov/animal-product-import

• A list of regions APHIS recognizes as affected by foot-and-mouth disease can be found on the USDA APHIS Animal Health Status of Regions website https://www.aphis.usda.gov/regionalization-evaluation-services/region-health-status

• For additional information about live animal imports regulated by other Agencies, please check with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services, and/or USDA APHIS Animal Care to ensure import requirements of those agencies are met, when applicable.

Source: USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Serivce 

We recommend that you send this notice to your suppliers if they are planning on importing any of these commodities from Hungary, Slovakia, and/or  Austria  prior to shipping to avoid any rejections and or delays.

Thank you

Flegenheimer International