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Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service logo Fruits and Vegetables Import Requirements (FAVIR)
Effective October 1, 2022 the Fruits and Vegetables Import Requirements (FAVIR) database has been replaced by the Agricultural Commodity Import Requirements database at https://acir.aphis.usda.gov/s/


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Commodity Import Report (CIR)

Lemon (Fruit) from Chile into Ports as Specified in the Import Requirements
The CIR contains current import regulation information for the selected Commodity Import (a specific commodity approved from a designated country, or region, into one or more designated ports). A flag ( Access Restricted to APHIS/CBP ) indicates information that is intended for and available to an APHIS/CBP audience only.
Citrus limon Commodity Summary Guide Page Country Summary

Active Alerts:
  Short Description    
ATTENTION: Mediterranean Fruit Fly Outbreak: Commodities from Quarantine Areas in Chile DETAILS  

 
Import Requirements
1 Admissible Plant Parts: Fruit
2 Admissible Ports: Ports as Specified in the Import Requirements
3 Import Permit Required: An Import Permit is required. To obtain a permit, go to APHIS eFile.
4 Subject to Inspection: This commodity is subject to inspection at the port of entry and all general requirements of 7 CFR 319.56-3.
5 Commercial Consignments Only
6 Production Location: If from an area free of Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata).
  6.1 Phytosanitary Certificate: Must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of Chile with an additional declaration stating the consignment was produced in a pest-free area for Ceratitis capitata. This requirement comes from Federal Order DA-2015-42 issued July 31, 2015, effective immediately and until further notice.
7 Production Location: If from a Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata) quarantine area.
  7.1 Condition of Entry Treatment: T107-a (Cold Treatment) , or T107-a-1 (Cold Treatment) , or T108-a (Methyl Bromide Fumigation and Cold Treatment) If the cold treatment has failed or has not been completed upon arrival, the consignment must complete the cold treatment before it can enter U.S. commerce and must arrive at either of the following locations:

     •  At ports located north of 39º latitude and east of 104º longitude
     •  At ports with approved cold-treatment facilities (https://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/ports/downloads/aphis-certified-cold-treatment-facilities.pdf)

This requirement comes from Federal Order DA-2015-42 issued July 31, 2015, effective immediately and until further notice.
8 Pest Mitigation Strategy: Consignments must satisfy only one of the mitigation strategy options listed below.
9 Pest Mitigation Strategy: Option 1
  9.1 Admissible Ports: All Ports
  9.2 Preclearance Program: Voluntary Preclearance: Consignments may or may not be precleared. To validate foreign site preclearance inspection and/or treatment, precleared consignments must be accompanied by a signed PPQ Form 203 or a vessel report from APHIS.
  9.3 Condition of Entry Treatment: T101-n-2-1 (Methyl Bromide Fumigation) If the consignment was not precleared or grown and packaged under an APHIS-approved systems approach, require T101-n-2-1, in addition to any Medfly treatments.
10 Pest Mitigation Strategy: Option 2
  10.1 Admissible Ports: Continental U.S. Ports
  10.2 Port Restriction: Do not import or distribute into or within Hawaii, Puerto Rico, or any U.S. territory.
  10.3 Pest Mitigation Strategy: APHIS-approved systems approach as stated on the phytosanitary certificate.
  10.4 Preclearance Program: Mandatory Preclearance: Consignments must be precleared. To validate foreign site preclearance inspection and/or treatment, precleared consignments must be accompanied by a signed PPQ Form 203 or a vessel report from APHIS.
  10.5 Phytosanitary Certificate: Must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of Chile with an additional declaration stating the consignment was produced in a pest-free area for Ceratitis capitata. This requirement comes from Federal Order DA-2015-42 issued July 31, 2015, effective immediately and until further notice.
11 Reference Information: To be treated in accordance with the Plant Protection and Quarantine Treatment Manual (https://www.aphis.usda.gov/import_export/plants/manuals/ports/downloads/treatment.pdf).
Commodity Information
12 For additional commodity information and images, visit https://npgsweb.ars-grin.gov/gringlobal/taxon/taxonomydetail?id=480120  
Additional Requirements
13 The following additional requirements apply to both pest mitigation options 1 and 2.

If the fruit is produced in an area of Chile where Mediterranean fruit fly (Ceratitis capitata) is known to occur, the fruit must be cold treated in accordance with 7 CFR Part 305. Fruit for which cold treatment is required must be accompanied by documentation indicating the cold treatment was initiated in Chile (a PPQ Form 203 or its equivalent may be used for this purpose).

The following additional requirements apply to only pest mitigation option 2.

Production site registration

The production site at which the fruit is grown must be registered with the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of Chile. To register, the production site must provide the NPPO of Chile with the following information: production site name, grower, municipality, Province, region, area planted to each species, number of plant/hectares/species, and approximate date of harvest. Registration must be renewed annually.

Low-prevalence production site certification

Between 1 to 30 days prior to harvest, random samples of fruit must be collected from each registered production site under the direction of the NPPO of Chile. These samples must undergo a pest detection and evaluation method as follows: the fruit and pedicels must be washed using a flushing method, placed in a 20-mesh sieve on top of a 200-mesh or finer sieve, sprinkled with a liquid soap-and-water solution, washed with water at high pressure, and washed with water at low pressure. The process must then be repeated. The contents of the sieves must then be placed on a petri dish and analyzed for the presence of live B. chilensis mites. If a single live B. chilensis mite is found, the production site will not qualify for certification as a low-prevalence production site and will be eligible to export fruit to the United States only if the fruit is fumigated in accordance with the approved fumigation paragraph below. Each production site may have only one opportunity per harvest season to qualify as a low-prevalence production site, and certification of low prevalence will be valid for one harvest season only. The NPPO of Chile will present a list of certified production sites to APHIS.

Post-harvest processing

After harvest and before packing, the fruit must be washed, rinsed in a potable water bath, washed with detergent with brushing using bristle rollers, rinsed with a hot-water shower with brushing using bristle rollers, predried at room temperature, waxed, and dried with hot air.

Phytosanitary inspection

The fruit must be inspected in Chile at an APHIS-approved inspection site under the direction of APHIS inspectors in coordination with the NPPO of Chile after the post-harvest processing. A biometric sample will be drawn and examined from each consignment of fruit, which may represent multiple grower lots from different packing sheds. Fruit in any consignment may be shipped to the United States only if the consignment passes inspection as follows.

Fruit presented for inspection must be identified in the shipping documents accompanying each lot of fruit that identify the production site(s) at which the fruit was produced and the packing shed(s) at which the fruit was processed. This identification must be maintained until the fruit is released for entry into the United States.

A biometric sample of boxes from each consignment will be selected and the fruit from these boxes will be visually inspected for quarantine pests, and a portion of the fruit will be washed and the collected filtrate will be microscopically examined for B. chilensis.

If a single live B. chilensis mite is found, the fruit will be eligible for importation into the United States only if it is fumigated in Chile in accordance with the approved fumigation paragraph below. The production site will be suspended from the low-prevalence certification program and all subsequent lots of fruit from the production site of origin will be required to be fumigated as a condition of entry to the United States for the remainder of the shipping season.

If inspectors find evidence of any other quarantine pest, the fruit in the consignment will remain eligible for importation into the United States only if a treatment for the pest is authorized by 7 CFR Part 305 and the entire consignment is treated for the pest in Chile under APHIS supervision.

Approved fumigation

Fruit that does not meet the conditions of the systems approach may be imported into the United States if the fruit is fumigated either in Chile or at the port of first arrival in the United States with methyl bromide for B. chilensis in accordance with 7 CFR Part 305. An APHIS inspector will monitor the fumigation of the fruit and will prescribe such safeguards as may be necessary for unloading, handling, and transporting preparatory to fumigation. The final release of the fruit for entry into the United States will be conditioned upon compliance with prescribed safeguards and required treatment.

Trust fund agreement

Fruit may be imported into the United States under this section only if the NPPO of Chile or a private export group has entered into a trust fund agreement with APHIS in accordance with 7 CFR Part 305.
Page ID: CIRReportP
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