IPSA mandates porcine registration and traceability in the TRAZARAGRO system

The Institute for Agricultural Protection and Health (IPSA) has issued Executive Resolution No. 035-2026, which establishes the mandatory registration, identification, and traceability of the porcine species throughout the national territory. The regulation, signed on May 12, 2026, by the executive director of the agency, Ricardo José Somarriba Reyes, was published in La Gaceta — Official Gazette number 164 on Thursday, September 3, 2026, page 8938, under registration Reg. 2026-00839.

The resolution requires all actors in the porcine chain to enroll in the official computer traceability system TRAZARAGRO, managed by IPSA, and to move animals only under the cover of the Unique Guide for Mobilization and Sanitary Control (GUIASA), with a maximum non-extendable validity of 72 hours and valid for a single transfer.

Regulatory Framework and Background

The measure is supported by Law No. 862, the Law Creating IPSA, and Law No. 291, the Basic Animal Health Law, which empower the State to dictate strictly compliant sanitary measures in the face of epidemiological emergencies. It is also framed within Ministerial Agreement 003-2009, which officialized the Agri-Food Traceability Program, and Presidential Agreement No. 01-2017, which appointed Somarriba Reyes to the position.

IPSA justifies the regulation due to the weight of the porcine sector in the family economy and food sovereignty, and the need to consolidate Nicaragua’s status as a country free of Classical Swine Fever (CSF) against the transboundary threat of African Swine Fever (ASF), aligning with the standards of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH).

Who Must Register

The obligation applies to any natural or legal person, public or private, involved in the porcine agri-food chain:

• Technified, semi-technified, and family or backyard pig farms.
• Collection centers and genetic centers.
• Transporters and means of transport for porcine livestock.
• Marketers.
• Industrial slaughterhouses, municipal abattoirs, and processing plants.

Each establishment will receive an alphanumeric Unique Establishment Code (CUE), which is unique and non-repeatable, automatically generated by TRAZARAGRO.

Identification and Mobilization

The identification of swine is applied according to the classification of the establishment:

• Technified and semi-technified farms destined for industrial slaughterhouses: internal methods (own ear tags, notches, or tattoos) are recognized.
• Breeding stock, imported or exported pigs: mandatory individual identification with official button-type ear tags using RFID technology.
• Family or backyard farms: individual or batch identification with official ear tags or internal mechanisms.

The GUIASA must declare the origin and destination, the carrier and means of transport, and the quantity and identification of the swine. Slaughterhouses and abattoirs must request the GUIASA prior to slaughter, archive the documentation for at least 24 months, and notify IPSA of any anomaly within a maximum period of 24 hours.

Implementation Deadlines

Application will be progressive, counted from the signing of the resolution:

• Immediate: mandatory registration of technified and semi-technified farms and collection centers.
• At 6 months: mandatory requirement and issuance of the GUIASA, whether physical or electronic.
• At 18 months: identification by lot in collection centers and individual identification with RFID ear tags for breeding stock and imported/exported animals.

Non-compliance with these provisions will be sanctioned in accordance with current legislation, and IPSA is authorized to invalidate, suspend, or restrict swine movements in the event of health alerts or outbreaks.

Impact

The resolution makes Nicaragua a country with comprehensive traceability of its swine livestock, from the farm to the consumer’s table. For producers and marketers, it entails new administrative and identification requirements, but it also strengthens the competitiveness of national pork in international markets by guaranteeing a transparent history and shielding the country’s sanitary status against ASF.

Source: La Gaceta — Official Gazette (Nicaragua), No. 164, Thursday, September 3, 2026, p. 8938 (official reference: Executive Resolution No. 035-2026, Reg. 2026-00839).