Washington - The U.S. Agriculture Department asked travelers not to bring swine products from the Dominican Republic into the United States.
The Dominican Republic has recently experienced an outbreak of hog cholera, a highly contagious viral disease of swine not present in the United States.
USDA prohibits meat or meat product imports from any country where hog cholera is present. But the message has not gotten to many travelers coming from the Dominican Republic.
"Our inspectors at international airports are having to confiscate a lot of swine products from the Dominican Republic that we are finding in the travelers' baggage," said Alfred Elder, acting deputy administrator of USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
To address the situation, travelers arriving in San Jaun, Puerto Rico; New York, N.Y.; Newark, N.J.; and Miami, Fla. from the Dominican Republic will be subject to stepped-up inspections, USDA said.
Meat Industry Insights News Service
P.O. Box 553
Northport, NY 11768
Phone: 631-757-4010
Fax: 631-757-4060
E-mail: sflanagan@sprintmail.com
Web Site: http://www.spcnetwork.com/mii