Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
Notice.
We are advising the public of our decision to begin issuing permits for the importation into the continental United States of fresh white asparagus from Senegal. Based on the findings of a pest risk analysis, which we made available to the public for review and comment through a previous notice, we believe that 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 via the importation of fresh white asparagus from Senegal.
Dr. Shirley Wager Pagé, Branch Chief, Commodity Import Analysis and Operations Staff, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737–1231; (301) 734–8758.
Under the regulations in “Subpart-Fruits and Vegetables” (7 CFR 319.56 through 319.56–47, referred to below as the regulations), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture prohibits or restricts the importation of fruits and vegetables into the United States from certain parts of the world to prevent plant pests from being introduced into and spread within the United States.
Section 319.56–4 of the regulations contains a performance-based process for approving the importation of commodities that, based on the findings of a pest risk analysis, can be safely imported subject to one or more of the designated phytosanitary measures listed in paragraph (b) of that section. Under that process, APHIS publishes a notice in the
In accordance with that process, we published a notice
Therefore, in accordance with the regulations in § 319.56–4(c)(2)(ii), we are announcing our decision to begin issuing permits for the importation into the continental United States of fresh white asparagus from Senegal subject to the following phytosanitary measures:
• Each shipment of white asparagus must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate bearing the following additional declaration: “The white asparagus in this consignment has been inspected and found free of
• Each shipment is subject to inspection upon arrival in the United States.
• The white asparagus must be a commercial consignment as defined in 7 CFR 319.56–2.
These conditions will be listed in the Fruits and Vegetables Import Requirements database (available at
7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, and 7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.