United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Plant Protection and Quarantine



## Risk Management Document



## Importation of fresh pods of French Bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. and Runner Bean, Phaseolus coccineus L. from Kenya into the United States

August 2 , 20 1 0

Plant Health Programs (PHP ) Regulations, Permits and Manuals (RPM)

Contact Person: Philip GroveThis document describes the risk management measures for the “Importation of French

Bean , Phaseolus vulgaris L. and Runner Bean , Phaseolus coccineus L. from Kenya into

the United States ” (all 50 States plus Territories). The volume of French and runner

beans to be shipped from K enya to the United States is estimated at 800 tons which corresponds to 29 sea containers per year (USDA, 200 9 )

.

United States Code of Federal Regulations (7 CF R 319.56) authorize s importation of fruits and vegetables from foreign countries into the United States.

A pest risk assessment (PRA)

, “Importation of French Bean , Phaseolus vulgaris L. and

Runner Bean , Phaseolus coccineus L. from Kenya into the United S tates ” (all 50 States plus Territories), was developed in support of a request by the Republic of Kenya for USDA authorization to permit imports of French beans ( Phaseolus vulgaris L) and runner beans, ( Phaseolus coccineus L

. ) into the United States (USDA, 200 9 )

. Entry of

th ese commodit ies into the United States presents a risk of introduction of exotic plant

pests. The PRA found t en quarantine pests that may follow the pathway of commercial shipments of French and runner beans. Eight of these pests were ra ted high risk, and two were rated medium risk. These pests are:

High risk pest s :

Bactrocera cucurbitae Coquillett (Diptera: Tephritidae) Chrysodeixis chalcites (Esper) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Dacus ciliatus Loew (Diptera: Tephritidae) Helicoverpa arm igera (Hübner) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard) (Diptera: Agromyzidae)

Maconellicoccus hirsutus (Green) (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) Spodoptera littoralis (Boisduval) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae)

Thaumatotibia leucotreta Meyrick (Lepi doptera: Tortricidae)

Medium risk pest s :

Lampides boeticus (Linnaeus) (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae)

Maruca vitrata Fabricius (Lepidoptera: Crambidae)

According to the USDA guidelines for pathway initiated pest risk assessments ( USDA,

2000 ), specific phytosanitary measures, supplemental to port

- of

- arrival inspection, are strongly recommended for pests given a ‘High’ pest risk potential and specific phytosanitary measures may be necessary for pests given a ‘Medium’ pest risk potential.

The PRA “Importation of French Bean , Phaseolus vulgaris L. and Runner Bean

, Phaseolus coccineus L. from Kenya int o the United States ” (all 50 States plus Territories), is based on the assum p tion that the beans exported to the United States would undergo specific postharvest processing as described in Appendix B of the PRA

. Kenya propose s to prepare the beans under p ostharvest processing steps such as wash ing

, which also contributes to pest risk mitigation, and grading of each individual bean pod

,which provides an additional opportunity for visual inspection

. Specific postharvest processing steps

, together with addi tional pest mitigation measures as required by

APHIS

, will ensure that quarantine pests are mitigated.



## Risk Management Measures

APHIS propose s that fresh pods of French beans and r unner beans from Kenya may be imported into the United States only unde r the following conditions:

1. The beans must be packed in packing facilities that are approved and registered

with Kenya’s national plant protection organization ( NPPO )

.

2. The beans must be washed in potable water, which will assist in removing any

insec ts feeding on individual beans.

3. Each bean pod must be either cut into chevrons or pieces that do not exceed 2 centimeters in length, or shredded or split the length of the bean pod. Split or shredded bean pod pieces should not exceed 8 centimeters in leng th and 8.5

millimeters in diameter.

4. Each consignment of French bean or r unner b ean must be accompanied by a Phytosanitary Certificate (PC) issued by the NPPO of Kenya attest ing that all APHIS phytosanitary requirements have been met and that the consignme nt was inspected and found free of quarantine pests.

5. Each shipping box must be marked with the identity of the packing facility to

ensure trace back.

6. Beans must be imported as commercial consignments only.



## Efficacy of Risk Management Measures :

Seve n of the pests cause obvious damage to beans and are easily detect abl e

. Damage

from Chrysodeixis chalcites, Helicoverpa armigera, Lampides boeticus, Liriomyza

huidobrensis

, Maconellicoccus hirsutus, Maruca vitrata and Spodoptera littoralis are all readily apparent. Liriomyza huidobrensis, is a leafminer and the mines are easily seen on bean leaves and pods and therefore can be culled during the packing process.

Maconellicoccus hirsutus is the pink hibiscus mealy bug whose grayish

- pink bodies are

covered w ith mealy white wax and with white wax filaments project ing from body and

thu s easily seen ( CABI, 2006)

. The other five pests

, Chrysodeixis chalcites, Helicoverpa armigera, Lampides boeticus, Maruca vitrata and Spodoptera littoralis are relatively large a nd the feeding damage and frass are easily detected so damaged beans can be eliminated during the packing house procedures.Damage from the remaining three pests, Bactrocera cucurbitae, Dacus ciliatus, and
Thaumatotibia leucotreta, is not easily detected in a whole intact bean. However, the Kenya processing , as described in the PRA, will include cutting each bean to a predetermined size. Therefore, APHIS will require that only consignments of beans meeting the following specifications are eligible for e ntry

.

1. Shredded or as chevro ns 1

- 2 cm bits, OR

2. Split , not exceeding 8 cm in length and 8.5 mm in diameter.

Cutting or splitting the beans allows for the detection of larvae of B. cucurbitae, D.
ciliatus, and T. leucotreta. Beans may also be shredded, as t his will both expose and destroy any internal feeding insects. Cutting the beans to 8 cm length and exposing the interior will reveal the presence of quarantine pests during inspection.



## Summary:

The requirement for each consignment to undergo specific m itigation measures diminishes the likelihood of quarantine pests following the pathway. Shredding or splitting each bean pod will further aid in the detection and exposing of internal feeders.

The importation of French and runner beans from Kenya will be restricted to commercial shipments only.

The requirements of a phytosanitary certificate from the NPPO of Kenya will document that the importation is a product of Kenya. A phytosanitary certificate also provides phytosanitary security by requiring the NP PO to conduct inspections for pests.

APHIS has determined that the listed risk management measures , along with the requirement of a phytosanitary certificate

, and the port of entry inspection

, will mitigate the risk of pest introduction on French and runn er beans from Kenya.



## Author:

Devaiah A. Muruvanda, Ph.D. Senior Risk Manager

- Entomology

## References:

CABI. 2006. Crop Protection Compendium, 2006 Edition. CAB International, Wallingford, UK.

7 CFR § 319 2008. Code of Federal Regulations, Title 7 , Part 319 (7 CFR § 319 Foreign Quarantine Notices) Subpart 56 (Fruits and Vegetables). United States Government

.

USDA, 2009. Importation of French Bean, Phaseolus vulgaris L. and Phaseolus

coccineus L . from Kenya into the United States. A Pathway

- Initia ted risk Assessment. Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Center for Plant Health Science and Technology, Plant Epidemiology and Risk Analysis Laboratory, Raleigh, NC. 62 pp.

USDA. 2000. Guidelines for Pathway

- Initiated Pest Risk Assessments, Vers ion 5.02. Plant Protection and Quarantine, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, United States Department of Agriculture.