WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has lifted its ban on meat from hunter-killed wild ruminant animals from Canada, which includes deer, elk, moose, caribou, bison, pronghorns, musk ox and mountain goats and sheep. Meat from bears, wolves and mountain lions was never subject to the ban.

The USDA ban on meat from Canadian ruminants was imposed May 20 after a cow in Alberta was found to have mad cow disease, part of the same family of diseases that includes chronic wasting disease in deer and elk. In mid-July, the USDA relaxed the ban so antlers, capes, hides and skull plates from wild ruminants could be imported by U.S. hunters. Then, after continued consultation with disease experts and hunter advocacy groups, such as the Bowhunting Preservation Alliance, the USDA decided Aug. 8 that hunter-killed meat procured for personal use presented no measurable health or safety risks.

However, hunters must present the following documentation in order to import their wild meat:

1. A “Veterinary Services Special Permit for the Importation of Hunter-Harvested Wild Ruminant Meat.” This permit can be downloaded from http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/issues/bse/bse.html, or by calling the APHIS National Center for Import and Export at (301) 734-3277.

2. A valid Canadian export certificate for wild-game meat, or a copy of a valid Canadian hunting license or hunting tag. (Some provinces require a separate export certificate, while others use the hunting license/tag as the export certificate.)

These documents must be presented at a certified U.S. entry port, which includes all major U.S. international airports, and specific road-accessed border crossings equipped to process wild meat imports. (Not all entry points at border crossings are staffed to handle meat imports.) The documents will be reviewed by an inspector with the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection. A list of the certified road-accessed entry ports and their hours, is available at the same USDA Web site above (http://www.aphis.usda.gov/lpa/issues/bse/bse.html).

The USDA’s decision to lift the meat ban was praised by Jay McAninch, CEO and president of the Bowhunting Preservation Alliance.

“This was a difficult process for the USDA, but it made the right decision based on the best science available,” McAninch said. “Hunters and most USDA staff understand that prions, the mutated proteins thought to cause CWD, have never been found in game meat, but this issue was complicated because the U.S. and Canada export huge amounts of beef. The U.S. exports $2 billion in beef to Japan alone. To ensure our nation’s beef industry wasn’t jeopardized, our government had to study this issue thoroughly. The new process for bringing home meat from Canada requires more preparation by hunters to get the necessary forms and travel through specific entry points, but these are not unreasonable procedures, given what’s at stake.”

McAninch said hunters should be patient and understand the USDA is dealing with a serious human health and safety threat. “Luckily for hunters, the scientific evidence is clear and uniformly accepted by all authorities,” McAninch said. “I urge hunters to cooperate with the policy, project a positive image when going through the Customs inspection, and accept the fact that import permits and tougher inspections are a sign of the times.”

To avoid any complications when bringing back meat, McAninch suggests hunters acquire all paperwork and USDA guidelines before leaving for Canada. Make extra copies of the USDA’s import permit and fill them out ahead of time. When crossing the border into Canada, stop at the U.S. Customs office and review the USDA’s guidelines with station staff to ensure you won’t have trouble when returning through that office. Show them your paperwork and, if necessary, leave a copy of the USDA guidelines with them. Although not all entry points have USDA staff on hand, they should be able to accommodate returning hunters if Customs staff members are familiar with the regulations. Find out the office’s capabilities before starting your hunt.

When buying the Canadian hunting license and/or provincial export permit, make extra copies. If a hunter bags an animal, McAninch suggests boning out the carcass before breaking camp, and then work with the outfitter or locals to properly dispose of all bones. To reduce the chances of import complications at the border, leave behind all bone material except the skull cap with antlers, as well as the heart, liver, kidneys or any other organs.

“The current guidelines specify that no lymph nodes and no intact heads containing the brain, eyes and tongue can be brought across the border, so I suggest boning out the meat and packaging it in clear 1- or 2-pound plastic freezer bags,” McAninch said. “Label all packages describing the cuts. If it was butchered commercially, make sure all meat packages are dated and labeled, and have the butcher’s name and address on them. Also, thoroughly clean the skull cap and cape and hide. Before closing the cooler or meat box, seal a copy of your hunting license, Canadian export permit and USDA import permit inside a plastic bag and put it on top of the packaged meat. If your meat gets left behind at some point while in transit, officials will have an easier time processing it through to you.”

McAninch reminds hunters that importing meat is their sole responsibility.

“Canadian outfitters have no responsibility in this,” McAninch said. “If they’re good businessmen, they’ll help make sure you’ll have no problems at Customs. But remember, lots of these guys are based hundreds of miles from the border and have never been through a U.S. Customs office themselves.”

McAninch thanked several members of the archery industry and bowhunting organizations who were instrumental in helping lift the ban on wild-ruminant meat.

“Ben Summers of T.R.U. Ball, Johnny Grace of Parker Compound Bows and I contacted Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.,), who is the House Agriculture chair,” McAninch said. “And Billy Ellis of the Pope & Young Club and I wrote a letter he sent to Sen. Thad Cochran (R-Miss.), who is an old college friend of Billy’s. Sen. Cochran is the Senate’s agriculture committee chair.

“The USDA staff really worked their tails off for hunters on this one,” McAninch continued. “Bobby Accord, the administrator of the USDA’s Animal, Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS); Bill Clay, head of the USDA’s wildlife services’ group; and Dr. Lisa Ferguson in the veterinary services unit worked hard to get this ban lifted. Plus, they stayed in close contact with us so we could keep bowhunters updated. We owe all of them our thanks.”

For more information about CWD, request the BPA’s brochure “Chronic Wasting Disease: Should You Hunt Deer or Elk This Fall?” The pamphlet can be obtained by contacting Kelly A. Kelly, the BPA’s manager of operations, at (866) 266-2776, ext. 3.