International Animal Trade Flashcards
Why are trade controls important?
- Key to preventing exoticc animal diseass from entering country leading to:
- Economic impacts from dx and other hazards
*Animla health, human health and public health risks
Define Exotic diseases
- Diseases that are known to occur elsewhere and may be
endemic, new, or emerging outside the country or region
of interest (e.g. UK, Europe) - Country of interest is currently considered disease-free
Define Endemci dx?
- Diseases caused by a pathogen that circulates routinely (all the time or seasonally) in a given population
Who is responsible for trade controls?
- International organisations
- national Veterinary services -> DEFRA (APHA)
Describe international organisations’s role?
- World Trade Organization (WTO) : oversees how trade rules are applied by countries and monitors countries’ trade policies)
- World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH): provides the international standards for trade in animals and animal products)
Describe DEFRA role?
- Surveillance, notification of national animal health situation
- Sanitary certification of animals and animal products intended for
trade - (Practicing UK vets/farmers will interact with APHA, generally not DEFRA directly)
What is the WTO and what does it do?
An intergovernmental* organization that oversees the application of multilateral** trade rules and agreements and:
■ Monitors national trade policies of member countries (to improve transparency)
■ Acts as a forum for multilateral trade negotiations
■ Facilitates dispute settlements
■ Offers technical assistance to countries
What are some of the WTO agreements
Agreement on the Application of Sanitary* and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS) Agreement on Technical
Barriers to Trade (TBT)
What are the objectives of the SPS agreement ?
What SPS measures emphasize the WTO principles
- Transparency
- Scientific risk assessment
SMS Measures Protect:
Describe the TBT agreement
Countries’ objectives that relate to non sanitary barriers to trade e.g. environmental protection, consumer interest, NUTRITION & ANIMAL WELFARE
The SPS and TBT respectively recognize a countrie’s right to : ?
- protect human, animal,
plant life or health (SPS) - and fulfil legitimate nonsanitary objectives (TBT)
A trade regulation/ legislation could consits of two components :
- One falling under the SPS Agreement
- Another falling under the TBT Agreement
How does WTO maintain transparency?
- Regular review of countries’ trade policies
- Compilation and publication of facilitatory / restrictive measures on different themes
- Countries MUST NOTIFY their trade measures and laws to WTO and make them PUBLIC
The WTO says trade measures should be based on international standards or on risk asessment -> who provides this?
The WOAH -> develops STANDARDS & provides guidance doing RISK ASSESSMENTS for animals and animal products
What are ALL the recognised standards under the WTO SPS agreement?
- WOAH -> Animal health
- International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) -> Plant health
- Codex Alimentarius -> Food safety
What Happens if a sountry adopts a trade policy or takes an action that other countries see as breajing the WTO agreements or not living up to obligations?
- WTO Standard process for resolving trade concerns
> First step – discussion/request clarification then formal dispute settlement
through WTO mechanism - WOAH Mediation
> Voluntary process to find a mutually agreed compromise through bilateral
discussion and by application of the relevant WOAH Standards
> Science based - Communication is through the country’s competent authority e.g. for the
UK is Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra)
What are regional trade agreements and bilateral trade agreements?
Reciprocal preferential agreements between two or more partners
What must these bilat trade agreements abide by?
- Authorized under WTO
- subject to a set of rules
- Required to notify WTO
What do these regional/ bilat trade agreements do ?
- Promote trade and commerce by eliminating / reducing trade barriers such as tariffs, import quotas, and export restraints between trade partners (e.g. UK and EU)
What might be a pro and a con of regional/ bilat trade agreements?
easier to put in place but may complicate clarity of international landscape for trade ?
Describe who the WOAH is?
An intergovernmental organisation created to prevent the spread of animal diseases throughout the world
*Five regional commissions, specialist technical commissions
*The WOAH delegate / representative for each country
Who is usually the WOAH delegate/ representative & what do they do?
- is normally the Chief Veterinary Officer (CVO) of the member country
- negotiates/agrees international veterinary
standards on behalf of their country
hat are the objectives of WOAH standards?
- Improve animal health and welfare and veterinary public health (zoonotic diseases)
- Promote early detection, reporting, and control of pathogens
- Prevent the spread of pathogens via international trade in animals and animal products
- while avoiding unjustified sanitary barriers to trade
Describe the WOAH international standards?
- Elaborated through a science-based approach
- Set out in the WOAH Codes and Manuals for terrestrial and aquatic
animals - Standards for health, diagnostic tests
- To be used by countries as the basis to further elaborate national
legislation and regulations
How are the WOAH standards developped?
What. aresome other functions of WOAH?
*Official recognition of disease-free status
(e.g. Foot and mouth disease, bovine spongiform encephalopathy)
*WOAH reference laboratories and collaborating centers support countries and
regions and the development of codes and manuals
*Identifies diseases of particular risk (WOAH listed diseases)
*Receives emergency disease notifications from countries
*Publicly posts emergency and annual national animal health information via
WAHIS
*Provides informational publications and capacity building
How does the WOAH risk analysis framework work?
All STO SPS measures must be based on SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE -> in absence fo relevant internation standard must be based on scientific risk assessment ( evidence in a dispute settlement)
E.g. evidence that a porcine product such as semen could carry ASF in order to ban import
So overall an international trade must be based on ….
What should the risk assessment include?
What is the role of national vet services in trade?
- National Veterinary Services – and ALL licensed practicing veterinarians - are
essential to safeguard animal health and welfare and veterinary public health at
the national level
> Surveillance for notifiable disease events
> Certification for animal health for movement
Who is the UK’s WOAH delegate & CVO?
Proffesor Christine Middlemiss -> responsible for notification to WOAH of animal dx events in UK
Who decides what are the nationally notifiable diseases?
Each country’s vet authority -> therefore not the same as WOAH listed diseases!!!!
-> Can be endemic or exotic diseases
What role of vets in trade?
identifying and reporting suspected or
confirmed notifiable diseases -> in UKk vets are legally required to report notifiable diseases if suspected or confirmed
What is an OV?
- MRCVS who perform work on behalf of the UK Government.
- Must complete post-graduate qualification: Improve International
- APHA issue personal OV stamp with personal SP number.
- Only to be used on official DEFRA documents (AHC, EHC, etc.)
