22930 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 79 / Friday, April 24, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

PART 319—FOREIGN QUARANTINE 

NOTICES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 319 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450, 7701–7772, and 

7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 CFR 

2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 

■ 2. Section 319.56–73 is added to read 

as follows: 

§ 319.56–73. Andean blackberries and 

raspberries from Ecuador. 

Andean blackberries (Rubus glaucus 

Benth) and raspberries (Rubus idaeus 

Linnaeus) may be imported into the 

continental United States from Ecuador 

under the conditions described in this 

section and other applicable provisions 

of this subpart. These conditions are 

designed to prevent the introduction of 

the following quarantine pests: 

Anastrepha fraterculus, Ceratitis 

capitata, and Copitarsia decolora. 

(a) General requirements. (1) The 

national plant protection organization 

(NPPO) of Ecuador must provide an 

operational workplan to APHIS that 

details the systems approach to pest 

mitigations and other specific 

requirements that the NPPO of Ecuador 

will, subject to APHIS’ approval of the 

workplan, carry out to meet the 

requirements of this section. 

(2) APHIS will be directly involved 

with the NPPO of Ecuador in 

monitoring and auditing 

implementation of the systems 

approach. 

(3) Andean blackberry and raspberry 

fruit from Ecuador may be imported into 

the continental United States in 

commercial consignments only. 

(b) Production site requirements. (1) 

Each production site must carry out the 

phytosanitary measures specified in the 

APHIS-approved operational workplan. 

(2) All places of production that 

participate in the export program must 

be approved by and registered with the 

NPPO of Ecuador. APHIS reserves the 

right to conduct oversight visits in the 

event of pest interceptions or other 

problems. 

(3) The NPPO of Ecuador or their 

designee must conduct a fruit fly 

trapping program for the detection of 

Anastrepha fraterculus at each 

production site in accordance with the 

operational workplan. If a designee 

conducts the program, the designation 

must be detailed in the operational 

workplan. The approved designee can 

be a contracted entity, a coalition of 

growers, or the growers themselves. 

(4) The NPPO of Ecuador must 

maintain records of trap placement, trap 

checks, and any captures of Anastrepha 

fraterculus. The trapping records must 

be maintained for APHIS’ review for at 

least 1 year. 

(5) The NPPO of Ecuador must 

maintain a quality control program, 

approved by APHIS, to monitor or audit 

the trapping program in accordance 

with the operational workplan. 

(c) Packinghouse requirements. (1) 

Packinghouses must be registered with 

the NPPO of Ecuador and comply with 

the requirements as specified in the 

operational workplan. 

(2) While in use for exporting Andean 

blackberries and raspberries to the 

continental United States, the 

packinghouses may only accept fruit 

from registered production sites. 

(3) If a single Anastrepha fraterculus, 

Ceratitis capitata, or Copitarsia decolora 

is detected by the NPPO in a 

consignment, the consignment may not 

be exported to the United States. 

Furthermore, if a single Anastrepha 

fraterculus or Ceratitis capitata is 

detected in a consignment at the port of 

entry and traced back to a registered 

production site, that production site 

will lose its ability to export Andean 

blackberries and raspberries to the 

continental United States until APHIS 

and the NPPO of Ecuador mutually 

determine that risk mitigation is 

achieved. 

(d) Phytosanitary certificate. Each 

consignment of Andean blackberries 

and/or raspberries must be accompanied 

by a phytosanitary certificate issued by 

the NPPO of Ecuador and bear an 

additional declaration stating that the 

consignment was produced and 

prepared for export in accordance with 

the requirements of § 319.56–73. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 20th day of 

April 2015. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–09578 Filed 4–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

7 CFR Part 319 

[Docket No. APHIS–2014–0086] 

RIN 0579–AE07 

Importation of Fresh Peppers From 

Ecuador Into the United States 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend 

the fruits and vegetables regulations to 

allow the importation of fresh peppers 

into the United States from Ecuador. As 

a condition of entry, the fruit would 

have to be produced in accordance with 

a systems approach that would include 

requirements for fruit fly trapping, preharvest inspections, production sites, 

and packinghouse procedures designed 

to exclude quarantine pests. The fruit 

would also be required to be imported 

in commercial consignments and 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate issued by the national plant 

protection organization of Ecuador 

stating that the consignment was 

produced and prepared for export in 

accordance with the requirements in the 

systems approach. This action would 

allow for the importation of fresh 

peppers from Ecuador while continuing 

to provide protection against the 

introduction of plant pests into the 

United States. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before June 23, 

2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0086. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2014–0086, Regulatory Analysis 

and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 

3A–03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1238. 

Supporting documents and any 

comments we receive on this docket 

may be viewed at http://

www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0086 or 

in our reading room, which is located in 

room 1141 of the USDA South Building, 

14th Street and Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC. Normal reading 

room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 799–7039 

before coming. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Claudia Ferguson, Senior Regulatory 

Policy Specialist, Regulatory 

Coordination and Compliance, 

Regulations, Permits and Manuals, PPQ, 

APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1231; (301) 851– 

2352; Claudia.Ferguson@

aphis.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The regulations in ‘‘Subpart—Fruits 

and Vegetables’’ (7 CFR 319.56–1 

through 319.56–71, referred to below as 

the regulations) prohibit or restrict the 

importation of fruits and vegetables into 


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the United States from certain parts of 

the world to prevent the introduction 

and dissemination of plant pests that are 

new to or not widely distributed within 

the United States. The regulations 

currently do not authorize the 

importation of fresh peppers from 

Ecuador. 

The national plant protection 

organization (NPPO) of Ecuador has 

requested that the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

amend the regulations in order to allow 

the common bell pepper (Capsicum 

annuum L.), locoto pepper (Capsicum 

baccatum L.), habanero pepper 

(Capsicum chinense Jacq.), tabasco 

pepper (Capsicum frutescens L.), and 

manzano pepper (Capsicum pubescens 

Ruiz & Pav.) to be imported into the 

United States. (Hereafter we refer to 

these species as ‘‘peppers.’’) 

As part of our evaluation of Ecuador’s 

request, we prepared a pest risk 

assessment (PRA) and a risk 

management document (RMD). Copies 

of the PRA and the RMD may be 

obtained from the person listed under 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT or 

viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site 

(see ADDRESSES above for instructions 

for accessing Regulations.gov). 

The PRA, titled ‘‘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 

(January 2013),’’ evaluates the risks 

associated with the importation of fresh 

peppers from Ecuador into the United 

States. The RMD relies upon the 

findings of the PRA to determine the 

phytosanitary measures necessary to 

ensure the safe importation into the 

United States of fresh peppers from 

Ecuador. 

The PRA identifies eight quarantine 

pests present in Ecuador that could be 

introduced into the United States 

through the importation of fresh 

peppers: 

• Anastrepha fraterculus 

(Wiedemann), South American fruit fly. 

• Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann), 

Mediterranean fruit fly. 

• Neoleucinodes elegantalis 

(Guene ́e), a fruit-boring moth. 

• Puccinia pampeana Speg., a 

pathogenic fungus that causes pepper 

and green pepper rust. 

• Spodoptera litura (Fabricius), a 

leaf-eating moth. 

• Thrips palmi Karny, an arthropod. 

• Tuta absoluta (Meyrick) Povolny, 

South American tomato moth. 

• Andean potato mottle virus. 

A quarantine pest is defined in 

§ 319.56–2 of the regulations as a pest of 

potential economic importance to the 

area endangered thereby and not yet 

present there, or present but not widely 

distributed and being officially 

controlled. Plant pest risk potentials 

associated with the importation of fresh 

peppers from Ecuador into the United 

States were determined by estimating 

the consequences and likelihood of 

introduction of each quarantine pest 

into the United States and ranking the 

risk potential as high, medium, or low. 

The PRA rated six of the pests as having 

a high pest risk potential for following 

the pathway of peppers from Ecuador 

into the United States: The insects 

Anastrepha fraterculus, Ceratitis 

capitata, Spodoptera litura, Thrips 

palmi, and Tuta absoluta and the 

fungus Puccinia pampeana. The PRA 

rated the insect Neoleucinodes 

elegantalis and the Andean potato 

mottle virus with a medium pest risk 

potential. 

APHIS has determined that measures 

beyond standard port of arrival 

inspection are required to mitigate the 

risks posed by these plant pests. 

Therefore, we are proposing to allow the 

importation of fresh peppers with stems 

from Ecuador into the United States 

produced under a systems approach. 

The RMD prepared for fresh peppers 

from Ecuador identifies a systems 

approach of specific mitigation 

measures against the quarantine pests 

identified in the PRA and concludes 

that those measures, along with the 

general requirements for the importation 

of fruits and vegetables in the 

regulations, will be sufficient to prevent 

the introduction of those pests into the 

United States. Therefore, we are 

proposing to add the systems approach 

to the regulations in a new § 319.56–73. 

The proposed measures are described 

below. 

General Requirements 

Paragraph (a) of proposed § 319.56–73 

would require the NPPO of Ecuador to 

provide an operational workplan to 

APHIS that details the activities that the 

NPPO would, subject to APHIS’ 

approval of the workplan, carry out to 

meet the requirements of proposed 

§ 319.56–73. An operational workplan is 

an agreement developed between 

APHIS’ Plant Protection and Quarantine 

program, officials of the NPPO of a 

foreign government, and, when 

necessary, foreign commercial entities, 

that specifies in detail the phytosanitary 

measures that will be carried out to 

comply with our regulations governing 

the importation of a specific 

commodity. Operational workplans 

apply only to the signatory parties and 

establish detailed procedures and 

guidance for the day-to-day operations 

of specific import/export programs. 

Operational workplans also establish 

how specific phytosanitary issues are 

dealt with in the exporting country and 

make clear who is responsible for 

dealing with those issues. The 

implementation of a systems approach 

typically requires an operational 

workplan to be developed. 

Paragraph (b) of proposed § 319.56–73 

would require fresh peppers from 

Ecuador to be imported in commercial 

consignments only. Produce grown 

commercially is less likely to be infested 

with plant pests than noncommercial 

consignments. Noncommercial 

consignments are more prone to 

infestations because the commodity is 

often ripe to overripe, could be of a 

variety with unknown susceptibility to 

pests, and is often grown with little or 

no pest control. 

Production Site Requirements 

Paragraph (c)(1) of proposed § 319.56– 

73 would require that the peppers be 

grown in a pest-free, pest-exclusionary 

greenhouse or similar structure 

approved by and registered with the 

NPPO of Ecuador. Pest-free production 

sites have been used successfully to 

prevent infestation by C. capitata and 

other quarantine pests for peppers of the 

species Capsicum annuum, Capsicum 

baccatum, Capsicum chinense, and 

Capsicum frutescens in Costa Rica, El 

Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and 

Nicaragua since 2005. No pests of 

quarantine significance have been 

intercepted by APHIS on fresh peppers 

grown in such structures and imported 

into the United States from these 

regions. The pest-exclusionary 

structures would have to be equipped 

with double self-closing doors to 

prevent inadvertent introduction of 

pests. In addition, any windows, vents, 

or openings in the pest-exclusionary 

structures (other than the double selfclosing doors) would have to be covered 

with 1.6 mm screening (or less) in order 

to prevent the entry of pests. The 1.6 

mm screening size is adequate to 

exclude A. fraterculus, C. capitata, N. 

elegantalis, S. litura, and T. absoluta, as 

these pests are relatively large. 

Paragraph (c)(2) of proposed § 319.56– 

73 would require that all production 

sites participating in the fresh pepper 

export program be registered with the 

NPPO of Ecuador. Such registration 

would facilitate traceback of a 

consignment of peppers to the 

production site in the event that 

quarantine pests were discovered in the 

consignment at the port of first arrival 

into the United States. APHIS would 

reserve the right to conduct audits and 


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22932 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 79 / Friday, April 24, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

1An approved designee is an entity with which 

the NPPO creates a formal agreement that allows 

that entity to certify that the appropriate procedures 

have been followed. The approved designee can be 

a contracted entity, a coalition of growers, or the 

growers themselves. 

inspect the production sites as 

necessary. 

Paragraph (c)(3) of proposed § 319.56– 

73 would require the production sites to 

be inspected prior to harvest by the 

NPPO of Ecuador or its approved 

designee 1 in accordance with the 

operational workplan. If, during these 

inspections, T. palmi, the Lepidoptera 

N. elegantalis, S. litura, T. absoluta, P. 

pampeana, the Andean potato mottle 

virus, or other quarantine pests are 

found to be generally infesting or 

infecting the production site, the NPPO 

of Ecuador would immediately prohibit 

that production site from exporting 

peppers to the United States and notify 

APHIS of the action. The prohibition 

would remain in effect until the NPPO 

of Ecuador and APHIS agree that the 

pest risk has been mitigated. 

Paragraph (c)(4) of proposed § 319.56– 

73 would require trapping for the fruit 

flies A. fraterculus and C. capitata at 

each production site in accordance with 

the operational workplan. 

Paragraph (c)(5) would state that, if a 

single A. fraterculus or C. capitata is 

detected inside a registered production 

site or in a consignment, the NPPO of 

Ecuador would immediately prohibit 

that production site from exporting 

peppers to the United States and notify 

APHIS of the action. The prohibition 

would remain in effect until the NPPO 

of Ecuador and APHIS agree that the 

risk has been mitigated. 

To ensure that the trapping is being 

properly conducted, paragraph (c)(6) 

would state that the NPPO of Ecuador 

would have to maintain records of trap 

placement, trap checks, and any 

quarantine pest captures in accordance 

with the operational workplan. 

Trapping records would have to be 

maintained for APHIS’ review for at 

least 1 year. 

Paragraph (c)(7) would state that the 

NPPO of Ecuador would have to 

maintain a quality control program, 

approved by APHIS, to monitor or audit 

the trapping program in accordance 

with the operational workplan. 

Packinghouse Requirements 

We are proposing several 

requirements for packinghouse 

activities, which would be contained in 

paragraph (d) of proposed § 319.56–73. 

Paragraph (d)(1) would require that 

fresh peppers be packed in a 

packinghouse registered with the NPPO 

of Ecuador. Such registration would 

facilitate traceback of a consignment of 

peppers to the packinghouse in which it 

was packed in the event that quarantine 

pests were discovered in the 

consignment at the port of first arrival 

into the United States. 

Paragraph (d)(2) would require that 

the peppers be packed within 24 hours 

of harvest in a pest-exclusionary 

packinghouse. The peppers would have 

to be safeguarded by an insect-proof 

mesh screen or plastic tarpaulin while 

in transit to the packinghouse and while 

awaiting packing. The peppers would be 

required to be packed in insect-proof 

cartons or containers, or covered with 

insect-proof mesh or plastic tarpaulin, 

for transit to the United States. These 

safeguards would have to remain intact 

until arrival in the United States or the 

consignment would be denied entry. 

Paragraph (d)(3) of proposed 

§ 319.56–73 would require that during 

the time that the packinghouse is in use 

for exporting fresh peppers to the 

United States, the packinghouse would 

only be allowed to accept peppers from 

registered production sites. This 

requirement would prevent such 

peppers intended for export to the 

United States from being exposed to or 

otherwise mixed with peppers that are 

not produced according to the 

requirements of the systems approach. 

Phytosanitary Certificate 

To certify that fresh peppers from 

Ecuador have been grown and packed in 

accordance with the requirements of 

proposed § 319.56–73, proposed 

paragraph (e) would require each 

consignment of peppers to be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate issued by the NPPO of 

Ecuador bearing the additional 

declaration that the consignment was 

produced and prepared for export in 

accordance with the requirements of 

§ 319.56–73. The shipping box would 

have to be labeled with the identity of 

the production site. 

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This proposed rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12866. The 

proposed rule has been determined to 

be not significant for the purposes of 

Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, 

has not been reviewed by the Office of 

Management and Budget. 

In accordance with the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act, we have analyzed the 

potential economic effects of this action 

on small entities. The analysis is 

summarized below. Copies of the full 

analysis are available by contacting the 

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT or on the 

Regulations.gov Web site (see 

ADDRESSES above for instructions for 

accessing Regulations.gov). 

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. 

The most recent production data 

available show that fresh pepper yields 

in Ecuador have expanded from 

approximately 12,522 pounds per 

hectare (pounds/ha) in 1996 to 

approximately 66,361 pounds/ha in 

2006. The total quantity of fresh peppers 

that were 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. 

Considering the total volume exported 

from Ecuador 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 equivalent to 

less than 0.02 percent of annual U.S. 

fresh pepper production. Similarly, the 

estimated quantity of fresh pepper 

imports from Ecuador (200 MT 

annually) is minimal compared to the 

total quantity of fresh peppers imported 

by the United States in recent years 

(800,000 MT annually). 

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. Accordingly, 

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. 

Executive Order 12988 

This proposed rule would allow fresh 

peppers to be imported into the United 

States from Ecuador. If this proposed 

rule is adopted, State and local laws and 

regulations regarding fresh peppers 

imported under this rule would be 

preempted while the fruit is in foreign 

commerce. Fresh vegetables are 


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Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 79 / Friday, April 24, 2015 / Proposed Rules 22933 

generally imported for immediate 

distribution and sale to the consuming 

public and would remain in foreign 

commerce until sold to the ultimate 

consumer. The question of when foreign 

commerce ceases in other cases must be 

addressed on a case-by-case basis. If this 

proposed rule is adopted, no retroactive 

effect will be given to this rule, and this 

rule will not require administrative 

proceedings before parties may file suit 

in court challenging this rule. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

In accordance with section 3507(d) of 

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), the information 

collection or recordkeeping 

requirements included in this proposed 

rule have been submitted for approval to 

the Office of Management and Budget 

(OMB). Please send written comments 

to the Office of Information and 

Regulatory Affairs, OMB, Attention: 

Desk Officer for APHIS, Washington, DC 

20503. Please state that your comments 

refer to Docket No. APHIS–2014–0086. 

Please send a copy of your comments to: 

(1) APHIS, using one of the methods 

described under ADDRESSES at the 

beginning of this document, and (2) 

Clearance Officer, OCIO, USDA, room 

404–W, 14th Street and Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250. 

APHIS is proposing to amend the 

fruits and vegetables regulations to 

allow the importation of fresh peppers 

into the United States from Ecuador. As 

a condition of entry, the fruit would 

have to be produced in accordance with 

a systems approach that would include 

requirements for fruit fly trapping, 

inspections, production sites, a quality 

control program, and packinghouse 

procedures designed to exclude 

quarantine pests. The fruit would also 

be required to be imported in 

commercial consignments and be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate issued by the NPPO of 

Ecuador stating that the consignment 

was produced and prepared for export 

in accordance with the requirements of 

§ 319.56–73. 

This action would allow for the 

importation of fresh peppers from 

Ecuador while continuing to provide 

protection against the introduction of 

plant pests into the United States. 

Allowing the importation of fresh 

peppers into the United States from 

Ecuador will require an operational 

workplan, registered production sites, 

trapping records, quality control 

program, packinghouse registrations, 

box labeling, and phytosanitary 

certificates. 

We are soliciting comments from the 

public (as well as affected agencies) 

concerning our proposed information 

collection and recordkeeping 

requirements. These comments will 

help us: 

(1) Evaluate whether the proposed 

information collection is necessary for 

the proper performance of our agency’s 

functions, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

(2) Evaluate the accuracy of our 

estimate of the burden of the proposed 

information collection, including the 

validity of the methodology and 

assumptions used; 

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and 

(4) Minimize the burden of the 

information collection on those who are 

to respond (such as through the use of 

appropriate automated, electronic, 

mechanical, or other technological 

collection techniques or other forms of 

information technology; e.g., permitting 

electronic submission of responses). 

Estimate of burden: Public reporting 

burden for this collection of information 

is estimated to average .007 hours per 

response. 

Respondents: NPPO, producers, 

exporters. 

Estimated number of respondents: 

802. 

Estimated number of responses per 

respondent: 251.45. 

Estimated annual number of 

responses: 201,669. 

Estimated total annual burden on 

respondents: 1,486 hours. (Due to 

rounding, the total annual burden hours 

may not equal the product of the annual 

number of responses multiplied by the 

average reporting burden per response.) 

Copies of this information collection 

can be obtained from Ms. Kimberly 

Hardy, APHIS’ Information Collection 

Coordinator, at (301) 851–2727. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

The Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service is committed to 

compliance with the E-Government Act 

to promote the use of the Internet and 

other information technologies, to 

provide increased opportunities for 

citizen access to Government 

information and services, and for other 

purposes. For information pertinent to 

E-Government Act compliance related 

to this proposed rule, please contact Ms. 

Kimberly Hardy, APHIS’ Information 

Collection Coordinator, at (301) 851– 

2727. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 319 

Coffee, Cotton, Fruits, Imports, Logs, 

Nursery stock, Plant diseases and pests, 

Quarantine, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Rice, 

Vegetables. 

Accordingly, we propose to amend 7 

CFR part 319 as follows: 

PART 319—FOREIGN QUARANTINE 

NOTICES 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 319 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 450 and 7701–7772 

and 7781–7786; 21 U.S.C. 136 and 136a; 7 

CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3. 

■ 2. Section 319.56–73 is added to read 

as follows: 

§ 319.56–73 Peppers from Ecuador. 

Fresh peppers (Capsicum annum L., 

Capsicum baccatum L., Capsicum 

chinense Jacq., Capsicum frutescens L., 

and Capsicum pubescens Ruiz & Pav.) 

from Ecuador may be imported into the 

United States only under the conditions 

described in this section. These 

conditions are designed to prevent the 

introduction of the following quarantine 

pests: Andean potato mottle virus; 

Anastrepha fraterculus (Wiedemann), 

South American fruit fly; Ceratitis 

capitata (Wiedemann), Mediterranean 

fruit fly; Neoleucinodes elegantalis 

(Guene ́e), a fruit boring moth; Puccinia 

pampeana Speg., a pathogenic fungus 

that causes pepper and green pepper 

rust Spodoptera litura (Fabricius), a 

leaf-eating moth; Thrips palmi Karny, 

an arthropod; and Tuta absoluta 

(Meyrick) Povolny, South American 

tomato moth. 

(a) General requirements. The 

national plant protection organization 

(NPPO) of Ecuador must provide an 

operational workplan to APHIS that 

details activities that the NPPO of 

Ecuador will, subject to APHIS’ 

approval of the workplan, carry out to 

meet the requirements of this section. 

The operational workplan must include 

and describe the specific requirements 

as set forth in this section. 

(b) Commercial consignments. 

Peppers from Ecuador may be imported 

in commercial consignments only. 

(c) Production site requirements. (1) 

Pepper production sites must consist of 

pest-exclusionary structures, which 

must have double self-closing doors and 

have all other windows, openings, and 

vents covered with 1.6 mm (or less) 

screening. 

(2) All production sites that 

participate in the pepper export 

program must be registered with the 

NPPO of Ecuador. 

(3) The production sites must be 

inspected prior to each harvest by the 

NPPO of Ecuador or its approved 

designee in accordance with the 

operational workplan. If any quarantine 

pests are found to be generally infesting 

or infecting the production site, the 


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22934 Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 79 / Friday, April 24, 2015 / Proposed Rules 

NPPO of Ecuador will immediately 

prohibit that production site from 

exporting peppers to the United States 

and notify APHIS of this action. The 

prohibition will remain in effect until 

the NPPO of Ecuador and APHIS agree 

that the pest risk has been mitigated. If 

a designee conducts the program, the 

designation must be detailed in the 

operational workplan. The approved 

designee can be a contracted entity, a 

coalition of growers, or the growers 

themselves. 

(4) The registered production sites 

must conduct trapping for the fruit flies 

A. fraterculus and C. capitata at each 

production site in accordance with the 

operational workplan. 

(5) If a single A. fraterculus or C. 

capitata is detected inside a registered 

production site or in a consignment, the 

NPPO of Ecuador must immediately 

prohibit that production site from 

exporting peppers to the United States 

and notify APHIS of the action. The 

prohibition will remain in effect until 

the NPPO of Ecuador and APHIS agree 

that the risk has been mitigated. 

(6) The NPPO of Ecuador must 

maintain records of trap placement, 

checking of traps, and any quarantine 

pest captures in accordance with the 

operational workplan. Trapping records 

must be maintained for APHIS review 

for at least 1 year. 

(7) The NPPO of Ecuador must 

maintain a quality control program, 

approved by APHIS, to monitor or audit 

the trapping program in accordance 

with the operational workplan. 

(d) Packinghouse procedures. (1) All 

packinghouses that participate in the 

export program must be registered with 

the NPPO of Ecuador. 

(2) The peppers must be packed 

within 24 hours of harvest in a pestexclusionary packinghouse. The 

peppers must be safeguarded by an 

insect-proof mesh screen or plastic 

tarpaulin while in transit to the 

packinghouse and while awaiting 

packing. The peppers must be packed in 

insect-proof cartons or containers, or 

covered with insect-proof mesh or 

plastic tarpaulin, for transit into the 

United States. These safeguards must 

remain intact until arrival in the United 

States or the consignment will be 

denied entry into the United States. 

(3) During the time the packinghouse 

is in use for exporting peppers to the 

United States, the packinghouse may 

only accept peppers from registered 

approved production sites. 

(e) Phytosanitary certificate. Each 

consignment of peppers must be 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate issued by the NPPO of 

Ecuador bearing the additional 

declaration that the consignment was 

produced and prepared for export in 

accordance with the requirements of 

§ 319.56–73. The shipping box must be 

labeled with the identity of the 

production site. 

Done in Washington, DC, this 20th day of 

April 2015. 

Kevin Shea, 

Administrator, Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service. 

[FR Doc. 2015–09581 Filed 4–23–15; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Animal and Plant Health Inspection 

Service 

7 CFR Part 319 

[Docket No. APHIS–2014–0028] 

RIN 0579–AD97 

Importation of Fresh Peppers From 

Peru Into the Continental United States 

and the Territories 

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health 

Inspection Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend 

the fruits and vegetables regulations to 

allow the importation of fresh peppers 

into the continental United States and 

the Territories from Peru. As a condition 

of entry, the fruit would have to be 

produced in accordance with a systems 

approach that would include 

requirements for fruit fly trapping, preharvest inspections, production sites, 

and packinghouse procedures designed 

to exclude quarantine pests. The fruit 

would also be required to be imported 

in commercial consignments and 

accompanied by a phytosanitary 

certificate issued by the national plant 

protection organization of Peru with an 

additional declaration stating that the 

consignment was produced in 

accordance with the requirements of the 

systems approach. This action would 

allow for the importation of untreated 

fresh peppers from Peru while 

continuing to provide protection against 

the introduction of plant pests into the 

continental United States and the 

Territories. 

DATES: We will consider all comments 

that we receive on or before June 23, 

2015. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by either of the following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to 

http://www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0028. 

• Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: 

Send your comment to Docket No. 

APHIS–2014–0028, Regulatory Analysis 

and Development, PPD, APHIS, Station 

3A–03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, 

Riverdale, MD 20737–1238. 

Supporting documents and any 

comments we receive on this docket 

may be viewed at http://

www.regulations.gov/

#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2014-0028 or 

in our reading room, which is located in 

room 1141 of the USDA South Building, 

14th Street and Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC. Normal reading 

room hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., 

Monday through Friday, except 

holidays. To be sure someone is there to 

help you, please call (202) 799–7039 

before coming. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. 

George Balady, Senior Regulatory Policy 

Specialist, Plant Health Programs, PPQ, 

APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, 

Riverdale, MD 20737; (301) 851–2240. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The regulations in ‘‘Subpart—Fruits 

and Vegetables’’ (7 CFR 319.56–1 

through 319.56–71, referred to below as 

the regulations) prohibit or restrict the 

importation of fruits and vegetables into 

the United States from certain parts of 

the world to prevent the introduction 

and dissemination of plant pests that are 

new to or not widely distributed within 

the United States. The regulations 

currently do not authorize the 

importation of fresh peppers from Peru. 

The national plant protection 

organization (NPPO) of Peru has 

requested that the Animal and Plant 

Health Inspection Service (APHIS) 

amend the regulations in order to allow 

the common chili pepper (Capsicum 

annuum L.), aji pepper (Capsicum 

baccatum L.), habanero chili (Capsicum 

chinense Jacq.), Thai pepper (Capsicum 

frutescens L.), and rocoto (Capsicum 

pubescens Ruiz & Pav.) to be imported 

into the continental United States and 

the Territories (the Commonwealth of 

Northern Mariana Islands, the 

Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, 

the Virgin Islands of the United States, 

and any other territory or possession of 

the United States). (Hereafter we refer to 

these species as ‘‘peppers.’’) 

As part of our evaluation of Peru’s 

request, we prepared a pest risk 

assessment (PRA) and a risk 

management document (RMD). Copies 

of the PRA and the RMD may be 

obtained from the person listed under 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT or 

viewed on the Regulations.gov Web site 

(see ADDRESSES above for instructions 

for accessing Regulations.gov). 


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