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Melissa O'Dell (301) 734-5222

Angela Harless (202) 720-4623

**USDA ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF FOUR PEST RISK ANALYSES FOR**

**THE IMPORTATION OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES FROM AFRICA**

WASHINGTON, July 24, 2007\--The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service today announced the availability of
four pest risk analyses, for review and comment, evaluating the risk
associated with the importation into the United States of peeled baby
carrots and baby corn from Kenya, *Ribes* species from South Africa and
peppers, eggplant and okra from Ghana.

On July 18, USDA published a final rule that established a risk-based
process for approving the importation of certain fruits and vegetables.
This process continues stringent protections for U.S. agriculture, yet
streamlines the lengthy rulemaking process allowing USDA plant health
specialists to focus on more complex domestic and import issues. Under
the new process, a notice announcing the availability of the pest risk
analysis is published in the *Federal Register* with the opportunity for
public comment. After the comment period ends, all comments are
considered, and if appropriate, a notice is published in the *Federal
Register* announcing that USDA will begin issuing import permits for the
commodity.

The pest risk analyses completed for peeled baby carrots and baby corn
from Kenya, *Ribes* species from South Africa and peppers, eggplant and
okra from Ghana conclude that these commodities can be safely imported
into the United States subject to one or more of five designated
phytosanitary measures, and therefore are eligible for the new
notice-based approval process. These measures include port-of-entry
inspection, approved postharvest treatment, a phytosanitary certificate
verifying that the commodity originated from a pest-free area, a
phytosanitary certificate verifying that the commodity is free from a
specified pest or pests or that the risk associated with the commodity
can be mitigated through commercial practices.

To learn more about the revisions made to USDA's fruit and vegetable
regulations, please go to
[www.aphis.usda.gov](http://www.aphis.usda.gov/) and click on the
Quarantine 56 hot issues link.

These notices were published in the July 18 *Federal Register.*

Consideration will be given to comments received on or before Sept. 17.
Send an original and three copies of postal mail or commercial delivery
comments to APHIS Docket No. APHIS-2007-0099 (baby carrots from Kenya);
APHIS-2007-0100 (baby corn from Kenya); APHIS-2007-0101 (Ribes species
fruit from South Africa) or APHIS-2007-0102 (vegetables from Ghana),
Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 3A-03.8, 4700
River Road, Unit 118, Riverdale, Md. 20737-1238. Comments can be
submitted by using the Internet, go to the Federal eRulemaking portal at
http://www.regulations.gov, select "Animal and Plant

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Health Inspection Service" from the agency drop-down menu; then click on
"Submit." In the Docket ID column, select APHIS-2007-0099;
APHIS-2007-0100; APHIS-2007-0101 or APHIS-2007-0102 to submit or view
public comments and to view supporting and related materials available
electronically.

Comments are posted on the Regulations.gov Web site and also can be
reviewed at USDA, Room 1141, South Building, 14th St. and Independence
Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C., between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday, excluding holidays. To facilitate entry into the comment
reading room, please call (202) 690-2817.

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