CBP and APHIS Expand RBS POE Program to Include New Varieties of Lettuce
CBP and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) are planning to expand the Risk-Based Sampling at Ports of Entry (RBS POE) program to include new varieties of lettuce arriving at select U.S. ports of entry starting the week of March 31, according to a cargo systems message.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
The goals of RBS POE are to reduce inspections on entities importing commodities compliant with current pest and disease regulations and provide incentives for producers to increase the quality of their goods, the CSMS message said.
Head lettuce (also known as iceberg), romaine, butterhead, red/green leaf and other lettuces that have Mexico as the country of origin and are conveyed by truck at the southern border are RBS POE-eligible commodities.
"Expansion of lettuce into specific varieties in RBS POE will allow for a more consistent application of the program’s inspection protocols," the CSMS message said. "Although this update does not change the entry process or requirements, PPQ and CBP recommend that trade entities file entry as early in the arrival process as possible and include APHIS Core Message Set data to ensure their shipments are processed according to RBS POE procedures."