United States 

Department of 

Agriculture

Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection 

Service

July 2014

Analysis in Support of Certification that the Rule 

will not have a Significant Economic Impact on a 

Substantial Number of Small Entities

Proposed Rule

APHIS 2014-0028

RIN 0579-AD97

Importation of Fresh Pepper Fruit from Peru into the 

United States

Policy & Program Development

Policy Analysis & Development
i

Summary

The proposed rule would amend the regulations to allow the importation of fresh peppers 

from Peru into the continental United States and the Territories when a systems approach to pest 

risk mitigation is used to prevent the introduction of quarantine pests. The systems approach 

would integrate prescribed mitigation measures that cumulatively achieve the appropriate level 

of phytosanitary protection.

Peru produced an average of about 9,600 metric tons (MT) of fresh peppers annually 

from 2005 through 2011. Over that same time period, fresh pepper exports from Peru ranged 

from 226 MT to 567 MT, accounting for between 2.6 and 7.0 percent of annual production. 

Based on Peru’s pepper production area and yields, APHIS estimates in the pest risk 

assessment for this proposed rule that no more than 22 containers (440 MT) of fresh peppers 

would be imported from Peru into the United States annually. This quantity is the equivalent of 

less than 0.03 percent of annual U.S. fresh pepper consumption. 

U.S. pepper producers and current foreign suppliers would face increased competition 

from the Peruvian exports. However, economic effects of the proposed rule would be minimal, 

given the very small quantity of pepper expected to be imported from Peru. Although U.S. 

pepper farms are predominantly small, the proposed rule, if promulgated, will not have a 

significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 
ii

Table of Contents

Summary.......................................................................................................................................... i

Introduction..................................................................................................................................... 1

U.S. Pepper Production and Trade.................................................................................................. 2

Peru’s Pepper Production and Expected Import Volumes by the United States ............................ 4
1

Introduction

Pepper is a warm-season crop that is sensitive to cold weather. There are two types of 

peppers: the large-fruited, mild-flavored bell varieties, preferred by most gardeners; and the hot 

varieties, which may be used green. The mild peppers include bell, banana, pimiento, and sweet 

cherry, while the hot peppers include cayenne, celestial, large cherry, serrano, tabasco, and 

jalapeno.1 The non-pungent or sweet forms are widely used and are grown throughout much of 

the globe. The hot varieties dominate spicy foods in Latin America and elsewhere.2

Currently, fresh peppers from Peru are not allowed to be imported into the United States, 

due to the presence in Peru of several quarantine pests. The proposed rule would allow the 

importation of fresh pepper fruit into the continental United States and the Territories under a 

systems approach to pest risk mitigation. It is part of a continuing program to allow the 

importation of foreign agricultural products that APHIS has determined are without significant 

risk of introducing pests or diseases into the United States. This analysis provides the basis, as 

required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, for certification by the APHIS Administrator that the 

proposed rule, if promulgated, will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial 

number of small entities.

 

1 University of California, D. 2007. Vegetable Research and Information Center, Pepper (Capsicum annuum). 

Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California., California. Last accessed October 23, 

2007, http://vric.ucdavis.edu

2 Eshbaugh, W. H. 1993. History and exploitation of a serendipitous new crop discovery. Pages 132-139 New Crops 

(Janick, J., Simon, J.E. ). Wiley, New York, U.S.A.
2

U.S. Pepper Production and Trade

Peppers are widely grown and consumed in the United States. U.S. per capita use of 

peppers has grown steadily and substantially since the 1980s. In 2012, Americans consumed an 

average of nearly 12 pounds of bell peppers and more than 7 pounds of chili peppers per person, 

up from 5.9 pounds of bell peppers and 4.8 pounds of chili peppers per person in 1990. 3 Peppers 

are also a significant source of U.S. farm income. Annual farm cash receipts averaged $636 

million from bell peppers and $147 million from chili peppers, 2008 through 2013. 

The United States produced a total of about 687,000 metric tons (MT) of bell peppers and 

188,000 MT of chili peppers in 2013. Total U.S. bell pepper production reached 800,000 MT in 

2011, before declining in 2012 and 2013. Since 2000, U.S. chili pepper production has ranged 

from 145,000 MT to 231,000 MT. While peppers are grown on a large number of farms across 

the United States, production volumes are concentrated in certain States. Commercial bell 

peppers are principally produced in California and Florida, but significant quantities are also 

grown in Georgia, Michigan, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Ohio. Chili pepper production is 

most heavily concentrated in California and New Mexico, followed by Arizona and Texas.

California is by far the largest pepper producer, with more than 359,000 MT of bell 

peppers and 117,000 MT of chili peppers (52 and 63 percent of U.S. production) in 2013. 

Florida’s production of 199,000 MT of bell peppers in 2013 was about 29 percent of the U.S. 

total. New Mexico’s production of 58,000 MT of chili peppers was about 31 percent of the U.S. 

total.

 

3 USDA, Economic Research Service, U.S. per capita use of selected, commercially produced, fresh, and processing 

vegetables and dry pulse crops, 1970-2012. 2012 is preliminary.
3

According to 2012 Census of Agriculture data, 11,568 farms produced bell peppers that 

year, with the majority (11,315) harvesting peppers for sale on the fresh market. Similarly, 7,951

farms produced chili peppers, with the majority (7,587) harvesting for the fresh market. More 

than 78 percent of bell pepper producers and about 80 percent of chili pepper producers operated 

on less than 1 acre. Another 16 percent of bell pepper producers and about 14 percent of chili 

pepper producers operated on fewer than 5 acres. Less than 1 percent of all pepper producers

had operations of 100 or more acres.4

Establishments classified within NAICS 111219, including pepper farms, are considered 

small by the Small Business Administration (SBA) if annual sales are not more than $750,000. 

The average value of bell pepper production per farm in 2012 was approximately $52,300, and 

the average value of chili pepper production per farm was approximately $20,700. Both sales 

levels are well below the small-entity standard of $750,000. Clearly, pepper growers are 

predominantly small entities according to the SBA standard. 

Although U.S. fresh pepper production continues to expand, it has not kept pace with 

demand and imports account for an increasing share of the market. The United States is, in fact,

the world’s largest importer of fresh peppers, importing about 29 percent and exporting about 4

percent of fresh peppers traded worldwide in 2011.

5

 

As a net importer, the United States imported an average of nearly 800,000 MT of fresh 

peppers annually from 2009 through 2013 (table 1). About 85 percent of fresh pepper imports 

are from Mexico, and another 11 percent comes from Canada. Other sources include the 

Dominican Republic and the Netherlands (a little more than 1 percent each), and Honduras, El 

Salvador, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Israel, which collectively account for just over 1 percent.

 

4 USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service. http://quickstats.nass.usda.gov/.

5 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
4

Annual exports averaged approximately 58,000 MT from 2009 through 2013. Primary 

foreign markets for U.S. fresh peppers are Canada and Mexico, with more than 95 percent of the 

peppers exported to Canada in 2013.

 Table 1. U.S. fresh pepper production, imports, exports, and domestic consumption, 2009 

through 2013, 1,000 metric tons

Year Production Imports Exports Net Importsa Domestic 

Consumptionb

--1,000 MT--

2009 989 649 63 585 1,574

2010 933 763 53 711 1,643

2011 992 779 59 720 1,712

2012 1,014 896 56 840 1,855

2013 890 906 57 848 1,738

5-year Average 963 799 58 741 1,704

Source: Production from USDA, NASS, Vegetables Summary, 2011, 2012 and 2013. Imports and exports from 

Global Trade Information Services, Inc. Columns may not sum due to rounding.

a

Imports minus exports.

b U.S. production (excluding processed utilization) plus net imports. Year-to-year carry-over not included.

Peru’s Pepper Production and Expected Import Volumes by

the United States

Peru produced an average of about 9,600 MT of fresh peppers annually between 2005 

and 2011, mainly in the regions of Lambayeque, Piura, Lima, Ica, Arequipa, Moquegua, and 

Tacna, under a wide range of climatic conditions.

6

 Over that same time period, fresh pepper 

exports from Peru ranged from 226 MT to 567 MT, accounting for between 2.6 and 7.0 percent 

 

6 The regions have elevations ranging from 0 to 3,750 meters (0 to 12,300 feet) and temperatures ranging from 41°F 

to 91.4°F. SENASA. 2009. Phytosanitary information about Pepper (Capsicum annuum) cultivation in Peru. 

National Plant Health Service, Plant Health Division, Servicio Nacional de Sanidad Agraria (SENASA), Lima, Peru. 

27 pp.
5

of annual production.

7

 The area in Peru in which peppers are produced for export encompasses 

about 9,880 acres. 

Based on Peru’s pepper production area and yields, APHIS estimates in the pest risk 

assessment for this proposed rule that no more than 22 containers (440 MT) of fresh peppers 

would be imported from Peru into the United States annually.

8 This quantity is the equivalent of 

less than 0.03 percent of annual U.S. fresh pepper consumption. 

U.S. pepper producers and current foreign suppliers would face increased competition 

from the Peruvian exports. However, economic effects of the proposed rule would be minimal, 

given the very small quantity of pepper expected to be imported from Peru. Although U.S. 

pepper farms are predominantly small, the proposed rule, if promulgated, will not have a 

significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. 

 

7 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.

8 USDA, APHIS, Center for Plant Health Science and Technology. “Importation of Fresh Pepper Fruit – Capsicum 

annuum L., Capsicum baccatum L., Capsicum chinense Jacq., Capsicum frutescens L., and Capsicum pubescens 

Ruiz & Pav. – from Peru into the Continental United States and Territories: A Pathway-Initiated Risk Assessment.” 

June 26, 2012.