As of August 20, 2021, Singapore has approved the Canadian Food Inspection Agency’s (CFIA) certificate for the export of all beef, including beef offal, with no age restrictions.
The change makes Singapore the first country to remove remaining Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) trade restrictions, following the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) recognizing Canada as a BSE negligible risk country on May 27, 2021.
“While Singapore is not currently a large market for Canadian beef, CCA is pleased with the market access progress as diverse market access leads to trade resiliency and the highest overall value for Canadian farmers and ranchers,” says Bob Lowe, Canadian Cattlemen’s Association (CCA) president. “We are encouraged by Singapore’s change and hope others will follow soon.”
Previously, Singapore had approved all Canadian boneless beef and bone-in beef from animals under 30 months of age. Expanded types of beef and beef products from May 27, 2021 onwards will now be accepted for import into Singapore.
The CCA says that while most of Canada’s trading partners had already approved all Canadian beef based on Canada’s previous OIE BSE controlled risk status, several key trading partners such as China, Taiwan, and South Korea have yet to approve all Canadian beef.
The CCA also states that in partnership with the Government of Canada, the organization has been working to have all remaining BSE restrictions on Canadian beef exports removed. Additionally, the organization is working to align the removal of Specified Risk Material (SRM) Removal with the U.S.
