The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing to loosen import requirements for plums from Chile to allow entry of non-irradiated fruit, it said in a notice released Nov. 2. Following detection of the European grapevine moth in April 2021, APHIS had required irradiation for Chilean plums, and during a two-month window also allowed for entry following a methyl bromide treatment. APHIS now intends to reinstate the methyl bromide treatment option, and will also allow imports for plums grown under a systems approach to mitigation, the agency said. Comments are due Jan. 3.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service intends to allow imports of fresh turmeric (Curcuma longa) rhizome from Samoa, it said in a notice released Oct. 26. An agency pest risk analysis found “the application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating plant pests or noxious weeds,” APHIS said. If APHIS finalizes the decision, it will allow imports into the U.S. and its territories, subject to the phytosanitary requirements specified by the agency. Comments are due by Dec. 27.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service intends to allow imports of fresh leaves and stems of garland chrysanthemum (Glebionis coronarium) from Mexico, it said Oct. 19. An agency pest risk analysis found “the application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating plant pests or noxious weeds,” APHIS said. If APHIS finalizes the decision, it will allow imports into the continental United States, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, subject to the phytosanitary requirements specified by the agency.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service is allowing imports of raw and processed poultry and poultry products from Poland, it said. The agency said it found Poland’s “poultry laws, regulations, and inspection system” equivalent to the U.S. regulatory and inspection scheme. “Poultry products derived from poultry slaughtered and processed in certified Polish establishments are now eligible for export to the United States,” FSIS said. “All such products will be subject to reinspection at United States points-of-entry by FSIS inspectors,” and remain subject to Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service import requirements, it said.
Lacey Act declarations will be required in ACE for entries subject to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s sixth phase of enforcement beginning Oct. 1, even though tariff flags might not immediately be in place for the relevant subheadings, an APHIS official said during CBP’s biweekly call with ACE software developers on Sept. 30.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
As the sixth implementation phase of Lacey Act declaration requirements for plants and plant products approaches Oct. 1, officials with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service reminded importers and exporters that more phases are to come before the agency meets its statutorily required goal of subjecting all plants and plant products to Lacey Act enforcement.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will require importers to apply for import permits for several types of plants and seeds in eFile, rather than the agency's ePermits system, beginning Sept. 27, APHIS said. On that date, importers must apply or reapply in eFile for Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) import permits for plants for propagation, bonsai, obscured seed, small lots of seed, plants in growing media, preclearance bulbs and dormant perennials, and articles not for propagation or planting. “All ePermits data will not be transferred to APHIS eFile,” APHIS said. “You will need to reapply in APHIS eFile to obtain a new permit.”
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced new entry requirements for Canadian strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and roses to prevent the introduction of the strawberry blossom weevil, a berry pest. Effective Sept. 14, entries of Fragaria spp., Rosa spp., and Rubus spp. plants produced in Canada must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate with an additional declaration stating the plants have been produced and certified as having been produced in a pest-free production site for strawberry blossom weevil, and have been inspected and found free of the pest, APHIS said.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is loosening requirements on importation of bovines and bovine products from Ecuador and Serbia, it said in a notice released Aug. 30. APHIS will classify Ecuador as having controlled risk, and Serbia as having negligible risk, of bovine spongiform encephalopathy, concurring with recommendations recently issued by the World Organization for Animal Health, the agency said. The countries had previously not been classified as having either controlled or negligible risk for BSE.