The goal is to be ready to act wherever it might be found to protect the industry.Ottawa—While government and industry is working closely to keep African Swine Fever out of Canada, it's also preparing a national action plan in case the deadly swine disease is found here, says Colleen Barnes, acting Vice-President of Policy and Programs at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA).“We're moving before we have the problem, trying to think through all the scenarios, think through in advance all the programming that's going to be needed,” she told the Commons agriculture committee.“We've been really focused for the last year on raising awareness,” she said. The goal is to make “sure everybody is aware of the danger and the implications. That is something we can control.“We've been very effective at bringing stakeholders along and making sure that we're all aligned and understand what we're doing and that every province or every government is doing what it can to manage the issue.”A region where the disease is discovered would be placed in a control zone designed to ensure customers for Canadian pork that pigs raised outside that area are safe to consume, she said.“We're thinking through the scenarios, what if it's in Manitoba, high-density? What if it's in a place that's remote?” she said. “We're negotiating with our trading partners now on what basis they would allow us to zone and they would accept our conditions.”The national action plan is a work in progress, she said. Steps have been taken to prevent ASF from entering Canada. “Now it's making sure internally we're ready. We need to do some operational planning, very detailed. Day one this happens, then this is what happens.” That will include different scenarios of where it could be found.The Pork Value Chain Roundtable is helping CFIA understand where it needs to focus its effort, she said. “We've taken our most talented people and put them on this file. Right now I think we're good where we are with our resourcing of the effort. Also, if the worst were to happen, the agency has emergency management money that we would be able to avail ourselves of.”Jaspinder Komal, Canada's Chief Veterinary Officer, said the CFIA is closely watching the development of a U.S. plan to monitor backyard and wild swine. “We are also looking at what our surveillance program in Canada is going to look like. We need to make sure that we're doing the right things so that we are making sure that if ASFis there, it is there. Sometimes you can have false reactions and they can have implications.“Those are the things we're trying to sort out but we'll have a program,” he said. “Similar to our key program, the U.S. is also looking at what they can do. It's a very concerted effort by both countries.Canada started working last summer with the U.S. and Mexico on how to keep ASK out of the continent and how to respond if it diagnosed in one of the countries, he said. Canada is also working with international partners like the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the European Union and a wide range of other participants from industry to academia.At the same time, farm biosecurity programs mean hog producers need to make sure any feed and supplies they purchase are from dependable sources who can verify the origin of the products, he said.Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.