APHIS to Conditionally Allow Fresh Bell Pepper Imports From Spain
USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service last week updated requirements pertaining to the import of fresh bell peppers (Capsicum annuum) from Spain as part of a broader effort to prevent the introduction of the Mediterranean fruit flies (Ceratitis capitata or Medfly).
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The APHIS Jan. 15 order calls for the national plant protection organization (NPPO) of Spain to adhere to an operational plan that defines mitigation measures for the fruit flies. The NPPO developed the operational plan with APHIS, and APHIS says that imports of fresh bell peppers from Spain may only resume if the operational plan is deployed. APHIS had worked with the NPPO to develop the plan after two shipments in December 2022 and March 2024 were discovered to be carrying fruit flies or medfly larva.
The current federal order supersedes previous ones, DA-2024-01 and DA-2022-42, the latter of which was issued after CBP inspectors at JFK Airport in New York in December 2022 intercepted five live medfly larvae and one pupa in commercial consignments of fresh bell peppers from Spain.
Federal Order DA-2024-01, issued Jan. 19, 2024, permits the resumption of imports of fresh bell peppers from Spain and orders the NPPO of Spain to implement corrective actions and safeguarding measures to prevent the entry of medfly into the U.S. However, in March 2024, CBP inspectors at JFK Airport intercepted a live medfly larva from a commercial consignment of fresh bell peppers from Spain. Since it was the end of Spain's export season for fresh bell peppers, no other peppers have been imported since then.