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



## Interstate movement of Sea Asparagus tips **( Salicornia**  **bigelovii ) from**  **Hawaii into the Continental United States** 
**Risk Managem ent Document** 

**Ju l** **y 29**  **, 201 4** 

**Plant Health Programs (PHP) Regulations, Permits and Manuals (RPM)**  **Contact Person: Dave Lam**  **b Introduction** 

The Hawaii Department of Agriculture submitted a request to move fresh tips of sea asparagus ( Salicornia biglov i i Torr. ) interstate from Hawaii into the c ontinental United States in 201 3 . In response to this request , the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHI S) prepared a pest list as per the Guidelines for Plant Pest Risk Assessment of Imported Fruit &Vegetable Commodities (USDA, 2012 ) . The pest list, Sea Asparagus Tips, Salicornia spp., from Hawaii Pest List (USDA, 201 4 ) found one fungus pest that could follow the pathway of fresh tips of Salicorn ia spp. : Macrophoma phaseolina (Tassi) Goid . This fungus pest is non - actionable in the continental United States. **Standard Industry Practices** InHawaii , sea asparagus is hydroponically grown in salt water ponds on floating plant cultivation platforms (ra fts) where the roots are exposed to brackish waters . T he shoots or tips of s ea a sparagus do not touch water , soil , or sediments. The product is harvested by hand, sorted (culled) for quality , and place d in plastic containers in cold storage prior to shippi ng ( Sun, 20 13 ) . **Risk Management Measures** The following risk management measures for sea asparagus must be followed for interstate movement from Hawaii into the c ontinental United States :
 Sea asparagus tips must be moved interstate as commercial consignm ents only .  Each consignment is subject to pre - departure inspection in Hawaii prior to interstate movement to the continental United States. **Evidence for the Effective Removal of Pest of Concern from the Pathway** B y restricting interstate movement of sea asparagus to commercial consignments only , we will ensure that appropriate sanitation , pest management, culling , and packing practices are in place to prevent the introduction of any pests . APHI S will inspect the asparagus tips to be moved interstate duri ng pre - departure clearance in Hawaii. In spection ensures that various stages of any pest or disease will be detected . In spection is an effective method for detecting pests and is a primary method of preventing quarantine pests from entering the United St ates ( Cav ey , 2003; Wittenberg & Cock, 2001) . **Conclusion** Macrophoma phaseolina w as the only pest identified as following the pathway of fresh sea asparagus tips from Hawaii ; however this pest is not actionable if intercepted in the continental United S tates . In spection is considered effective at finding external feeding pests and excludinginfested shipments from entering commerce (Cavey , 2003; Wittenberg 7 Cock, 2001 ). APHI S

believes that the phy

tosanitary measures proposed in this document will resu lt in the effective removal of any pests associated with the i nter - state movement of fresh seas asparagus tips from Hawaii into the continental United States. **Authors** José R. Hernández Senior Risk Manager Walter P. Gould Senior Risk Manager **Reference s:**  Cavey , J.F. 2003. Mitigating introduction of invasive plant pests: the APHI S - PPQ Mission. From: Chapter 13, pp. 350 - 361 in Ruiz, G.M and J.T. Carlton. 2003. Invasive species: vectors and management strategies. I sland Press, Washington, D.C. 518pp. Sun, W.H. 2013. Pre - requisite Requirements for the Application of Commodity Risk Assessment for Importing Sea Asparagus Tips, Salicornia bigelovii from Hawaii to the Continental United States . DBA Marine Agrifuture, LLC ., Olakai , Hawaii . 11pp. USDA . 20 12 . Guidelines for Plant Pest Risk Assessment of Imported Fruit & Vegetable Commodities . USDA - APHI S, PPQ . Center for Plant Health Science and Technology , Plant Epidemiology

and Risk Analy sis L aboratory . 14 3 pp. USDA. 201 4 . Sea Asparagus Tips, Salicornia spp., from Hawaii Pest L ist . USDA, AP HI S, PPQ, CPHST, PERAL , Raleigh, NC. 2 pp. Wittenberg, R. and M.J.W. Cock. 2001. Invasive Alien Species: A toolkit of best prevention and management practices. CABI publishing, CAB International, Wall ingford, Oxon, UK. 228 pp.