On Feb. 11 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced changes Feb. 11 to Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) electronic manuals. While some changes are minor, other changes may affect the admissibility of the plant products, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service PPQ’s Plant Inspection Station in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is closing effective immediately. San Juan importers must hire a PPQ-approved fumigation company to conduct required treatments in the future, APHIS said. The San Juan Plant Inspection Station can provide importers with a list of approved fumigation companies.
The Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing changes to importer membership requirements for the Watermelon Research and Promotion Plan in an attempt to add more importer representation. The proposed rule would remove the requirement that an importer import more than 50 percent of the total volume handled and imported in order to qualify as an importer member. Comments are due by March 15.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced changes Feb. 8 to Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) electronic manuals. While some changes are minor, other changes may affect the admissibility of the plant products, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing changes to its regulations on imports of plants for planting. The proposed rule would make changes specific to certain plants and regions, codify existing APHIS practices, and clarify and update some provisions in the regulations. Comments on the proposal are due by Feb. 15.
On Feb. 8 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Food Safety and Inspection Service revised export requirements and plant lists for the following countries for Feb. 1-7:
On Feb. 7 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service adopted its interim final rule on imports of horses from contagious equine metritis-affected countries, with changes. The March 25, 2011, interim final rule added a certification requirement for imported horses 731 days of age or less, as well as new testing protocols for test mares and imported stallions and mares more than 731 days of age. This final rule revises some contagious equine metritis testing requirements for imported stallions and mares, and for test mares, that were amended in the interim rule.