Certain personal imports of pork from the European Union, the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Switzerland will be banned to curb UK entry of African swine fever.
The government has announced the new measure to better protect pig producers from a potential African swine fever outbreak, as the disease spreads in Europe.
ASF is a highly contagious and deadly disease in pigs and wild boar that can be transmitted through infected meat, but poses no risk to human health.
From tomorrow (27 September), those found to bring pork or pork products illegally could be fined up to £5,000, with the products seized and destroyed.
The ban includes personal pork and pork product imports from the EEA (European Economic Area), the Faroe Islands, Greenland and Switzerland.
However, products that are manufactured and packaged to EU commercial standards and weigh less than a maximum of 2kg will still be allowed.
The National Pig Association (NPA) welcomed the new measure, but said it was not tough enough, as a total ban on personal imports of pork to the UK was needed.
An outbreak of ASF could have a significant impact on the UK’s £8 billion pig industry, as well as its annual pork and pork product exports worth £600 million.
It is estimated that an outbreak of the disease would cost the UK anywhere between £10 million to £100 million.
Defra said the new safeguarding rule aimed to help protect the British pig sector by mitigating ASF's spread across the border to the UK.
Announcing the measure, Biosecurity Minister Baroness Hayman warned that the 'deadly' African swine fever disease was 'wreaking havoc' in Europe.
She said: “These new measures will protect British pig farmers and pork products, preventing infected meat from being brought over the border and threatening our biosecurity.”
The UK has never had an outbreak ASF, and commercial meat imports are checked at the border to ensure infected goods do not reach UK shores.
