United States 

Department of 

Agriculture

Animal and 

Plant Health 

Inspection 

Service

October, 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 2014-0086

RIN 0579-AE07

Importation of Fresh Pepper from Ecuador 

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 Ecuador into the United States 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.

Most recent production data show that pepper yields in Ecuador have grown from 12,522 

pounds/ha in 1996 to 66,361 pounds/ha in 2006. The amount of fresh peppers exported from 

Ecuador in 2006 and 2007 was 96.3 metric tons (MT) and 206.5 MT, respectively. Sea shipping 

containers that are 40-feet in length hold approximately 20 U.S MT. If this product is imported 

from Ecuador, considering the total volume exported by this country during these years, APHIS

estimates imports of no more than 10 containers (200 MT) of fresh peppers from Ecuador into 

the United States annually. This quantity is the equivalent of less than 0.02 percent of annual 

U.S. fresh pepper production.

In the United States, 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 levels are well below the small-entity standard of $750,000. 

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. 

Clearly, pepper growers are predominantly small entities according to the SBA standard. Under 

these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has 

determined that this action would 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...................................................................................... 1

Potential Impact on Small Entities...................................................................................... 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 Ecuador are not allowed to be imported into the United 

States. The proposed rule would allow the importation of fresh peppers into the United States 

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.

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, 

 

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

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. During 2008 – 2013, annual farm cash receipts 

averaged $636 million from bell peppers and $147 million from chili peppers. 

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. 

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 2011.4 

 

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.

4

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
3

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.

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.

Most recent production data show that pepper yields in Ecuador has grown from 12,522 

pounds/ha in 1996 to 66,361 pounds/ha in 2006. The amount of fresh peppers exported from 

Ecuador in 2006 and 2007 was 96.3 metric tons (MT) and 206.5 MT, respectively

5

. Sea shipping 

containers that are 40 feet in length hold approximately 20 U.S MT. If this product is imported 

 

5 USDA, APHIS, “Importation of Fresh Pepper Fruit – Capsicum annuum L., Capsicum baccatum L., Capsicum 

chinense Jacq., Capsicum frutescens L., and Capsicum pubescens Ruiz & Pav. – from Ecuador into the United 

States, March 25, 2014.
4

from Ecuador, considering the total volume exported by this country during these years, APHIS 

estimates imports of no more than 10 containers (200 MT) of fresh peppers from Ecuador into 

the United States annually. This quantity is the equivalent of less than 0.02 percent of annual 

U.S. fresh pepper production.

Potential Impact on Small Entities

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 acres or more.6

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 levels 

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

predominantly small entities according to the SBA standard. 

Under these circumstances, the Administrator of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service has determined that this action would not have a significant economic impact on a 

substantial number of small entities.

 

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