. /.WORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/SPS/N/MEX/154
6 March 2000
(00-0837)
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures Original:  Spanish
NOTIFICATION OF EMERGENCY MEASURES
1. Member to Agreement notifying:  MEXICO
If applicable, name of local government involved:           
2. Agency responsible:  Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national schedules
deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where
applicable).  Fruit and vegetables  Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the
extent relevant or practicable:  Guatemala mainly and countries which export these
products to Mexico.
4. Title and number of pages of the notified document:  Mexican (Emergency) Official
Standard NOM-EM-033-FITO-2000, Containment and Eradication of Outbreaks of the
Mediterranean Fruit Fly in the Municipalities of Chiapas State, as specified (4 pages)
5. Description of content:   The purpose of this Emergency Official Standard is to establish
compulsory phytosanitary regulations to contain and eradicate outbreaks of the
Mediterranean fruit fly, Ceratitis capitata  (Wied) in the municipalities of Acacoyagua,
Amatenango de la Frontera, Bejucal de Ocampo, Bellavista, Cacahoatán, Escuintla,
Frontera Hidalgo, Frontera Comalapa, Huehue tán, Huixtla, La Grandeza, Las Margaritas,
Independencia, Ocosingo, Trinitaria, Mazapa de Madero, Mazatán, Metapa de Domínguez,
Motozintla, El Porvenir, Siltepec, Suchiate, Tapachula, Tuxtla Chico, Tuzantán and Unión
Juárez in Chiapas State.  The provisions of this Standard shall apply to:
(a) Commercial plantations and fringe areas with Mediterranean fruit fly host fruit;
(b) areas with ecological reserves, parks, recreation and tourist areas;
(c) industries, packing plants, coffee processing centres, collection centres and supply 
points marketing Mediterranean fruit fly host fruit.  Where quarantine treatment 
facilities are available, they shall also be subject to this Official Standard;
(d) motor-freight and passenger vehicles, as well as private vehicles;
(e) air, sea, coach and railway terminals;
(f) luggage, bags or packages carried by persons crossing internal checkpoints.
6. Objective and rationale:  [     ] food safety,  [     ] animal health,  [  X ] plant protection,
[  ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease,[     ] protect territory from other
damage from pests           G/SPS/N/MEX/154
Page 2
7. Nature of the urgent problem(s):
The  Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Rural Development is empowered to
apply the national emergency plant health scheme when pests are detected which create a
phytosanitary emergency for one or more plant species in all or part of the national territory.As Mexico is a signatory to the WHO International Plant Protection Convention and various
commercial treaties, it has an obligation to control and eradicate high-risk phytosanitary
hazards such as the Mediterranean fruit fly, in order to facilitate the marketing of fruit and
vegetables.  In Chiapas State, outbreaks of the pest have been eliminated in the
municipalities furthest from the frontier with Guatemala;  however, isolated outbreaks have
been recorded in the municipalities of Acacoyagua, Amatenango de la Frontera, Bejucal de
Ocampo, Bellavista, Cacahoatán, Escuintla, Frontera Hidalgo, Frontera Comolapa,Huehuetán, Huixtla, La Grandeza, Las Margaritas, Independencia, Ocosingo, Trinitaria,
Mazapa de Madero, Mazatán, Metapa de Domínguez, Motozintla, El Porvenir, Siltepec,
Suchiate, Tapachula, Tuxtla Chico, Tuzantán and Unión Juárez in Chiapas State, and this
affects the phytosanitary situation because of the need to protect areas in the state that have
been rendered free of the pest and to continue the eradication process until it is eliminatedfrom Mexican territory.          
8. An international standard, guideline or recommendation does not exist [ X ].  If an
international standard, guideline or recom mendation exists, give its appropriate
reference and briefly identify deviations:           
9. Relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available:  Official Journal of
the Federation, 19 January 2000 (available in Spanish)
10. Date of entry into force/period of application (as applicable): ):  On the day following
publication in the Official Journal of the Federation (20 January 2000), valid for six months
after publication.
11. Texts available from/and agency or authority designated to handle comments:
[ X ] National notification authority, [     ] National enquiry point or address, fax
number and E-mail address (if available) of other body: