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



## Risk Managem **ent Document**



## 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 St ates** 

**January 18 , 201**  **3**

**Plant Health Programs (PHP) Regulations, Permits and Manuals (RPM)**  **Contact Person: Claudia Ferguson** **Introduction**

This risk management document was prepared by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service ( APHI S ) t o provide risk management strategies for the importation of peppers from Ecuador following the development of a commodity

- based, pathway

- initiated risk anal ys is (PRA) that was conducted by APHIS (USDA, 20 11 )

. APHI S prepared a PRA to examine plant pest ri sks associated with the importation of fresh pepper ( Capsicum spp., specificall y the domesticated species Capsicum annuum L. , C. baccatum L., C. chinense Jacq

. , C. frutescens L., and C. pubescens Ruiz & Pav. ) fruit with stems in response to a request by

th e government of Ecuador ( USDA , 20 11 )

. T h e PRA considered the risk associated with the import ation of several species of Capsicum ( C. annuum , C. baccatum , C. chinense, and C. frutescens ) because of taxonomic uncertaint y regarding the species status (Wals h & Hoot, 2001) and because wild populations of C. annuum merge with populations of C. frutescens and C. chinense ( Eshbaugh, 1993 ). There is a wide overlap of common name usage among all domesticated Capsicum species (Bosland, 1996) so two other cultivated species ( C. baccatum and C. pubescens ) were also included in the PRA (USDA, 20 11 )

. The P RA was prepared based on pest interception data, the scientific literature, and information provided by the Government of Ecuador. The PRA found nine quarantine pests that may follow the pathway of fresh peppers fruit with stems from Ecuador into the Unit ed States (USDA, 20 11 ) . The pest list include s seven insects, one fungus and one virus

. **Arthropods** Anastrepha fraterculus Wiedemann (Diptera: Tephritidae) Ceratitis capitata Wiedemann (Diptera: Tephritidae) Neoleucinodes elegantalis (Guenée) (Lepido ptera: P yr alidae) Spodoptera litura (Fabricius) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) Thrips palmi Karny (Thy sanoptera: Thripidae) Tuta absoluta (Mey

rick) Povolny (Lepidoptera: Gelechiidae) **Fungi** Puccinia pampeana Speg. ( Urediniom ycet es: Uredinales) **Viruses** And ean potato mottle virus (APMoV) (Comoviridae) The PRA rated seven pests , s ix insects and one fungus , as **High** pest risk potential ( the insects Anastrepha fraterculus , Ceratitis capitata , Frankliniella schultzei , Spodoptera litura , Thrips palmi , and Tuta absoluta , and the fungus, Puccinia pampeana )

. The PRA rated Neoleucinodes elegantalis , and the virus Andean potato mottle virus

— with **Medium** pest risk potentials. According to USDA guidelines for pathway initiated pest risk assessments ( USDA, 2000 ) , s pecific phy tosanitary measures bey ond port of entry inspection are strongl y recommended for pests with **High** pest risk potentials, and phy tosanitary measures may

be necessary

for pests with **Medium** pest risk potential.**Risk Mitigation Measures** 

Fresh pepper ( Capsicum spp.) fruits with stems may be imported into the United States from Ecuador onl y under the following conditions: (1) The NPPO of Ecuador must provide an operational workplan to APHIS that details the activities and responsibilities Ecuador’s NPPO will, subject to APHI S’ approval of the workplan, carr y out to meet the requirements of the s ys tems approach

. The peppers must be grown in approved production sites registered with the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO ) of Ecuador . Initial approval of the production sites will be completed jointly by the Ecuadorian NPPO and APHI S. The Ecuadorian NPPO will visit and inspect the production sites monthly , starting 2 months before harvest and continuing through until the end of the shipping season. APHI S reserves the right to require APHIS oversight visits in the event of pest intercep tions or other problems. (2) Pepper production sites must consist of pest

- exclusionary greenhouses, which must have double self

- closing doors and have all other openings and vents covered with 1.6 mm (or less) screening. (3) Registered sites must contain traps for the detection of Medfl y and Anastrepha fraterculus both within and around the production site. ( a ) Traps with approved protein bait must be placed inside the greenhouses at a density of four traps per hectare, with a minimum of two traps per gr eenhouse. Traps must be serviced on a weekly

basis. ( b ) If a single Medfl y or Anastrepha fraterculus is detected inside a registered production site or in a consignment, the registered production site will lose its ability to export peppers to the United States until APHI S and the Ecuadorian NPPO mutually determine that risk mitigation is achieved. ( c ) Medfly

traps with an approved lure must be placed inside a buffer area 500 meters wide around the registered production site, at a density of 1 trap per 10 hectares and a minimum of 10 traps. These traps must be checked at least every 7 day s. At least one of these traps must be near the greenhouse. Traps must be set for at least 2 months before export and trapping must continue to the end of the harvest. ( d ) Capture of 0.7 or more Medflies per trap per week will delay or suspend the harvest, depending on whether harvest has begun, for consignments of peppers from that production site until APHI S and the Ecuadori an NPPO can agree that the pest risk has been m itigated. (4 ) The greenhouse must be inspected prior to harvest for the thrips Thrips palmi , the Lepidoptera Neoleucinodes elegantalis , Spodoptera litura and Tuta absoluta , the Fungi Puccinia pampeana and the Andean potato mottle virus

. If any of these p ests or other quarantine pests is found to be generall y infesting or infecting the greenhouse, export from that production site willbe halted until the Ecuadorian NPPO determines that the pest risk has been mitigated.

(5 ) The Ecuadorian NPPO must maintai n records of trap placement, checking of traps, and an y Medfly or Anastrepha fraterculus captures. The Ecuadorian NPPO must maintain an APHIS

approved qualit y control program to monitor or audit the trapping program. The trapping records must be maintained for APHI S' review. (6 ) The peppers must be packed within 24 hours of harvest in a pest

- exclusionary packinghouse. The peppers must be safeguarded b y an insect

- proof mesh screen or plastic tarpaulin while in transit to the packinghouse and while awaiting packing. Peppers must 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 must remain intact until arrival in the United States or the consignment will be denied entry into the United States. (7 ) During the time the packinghouse is in use for exporting peppers to the United States, the packinghouse may

accept peppers onl y from registered approved production sites. (8 ) The Ecuadorian NPPO is responsible fo r export certification, inspection, and issuance of phy tosanitary certificates. Each consignment of peppers must be accompanied by a phy tosanitary certificate issued b y the NPPO of Ecuador bearing the following additional declaration : “ This consignment was produced and prepared in accordance with the requirements in the bilateral operational workplan .” The shipping box must be labeled with the identity of the production site.
**Efficacy of**  **Risk M itigation**  **Measures** Establishment of pest

- free places of pro duction obviates the need for post

- harvest commodity treatments to achie ve phy tosanitary securit y ( IP PC 1996; 1999). Pest free places of production have been used successfully to prevent infestation by Mediterranean fruit fly (Medfl y) for peppers of the s pecies 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 b y APHIS on peppers imported using this sy stems approach ( AQAS , 20 11 )

. Thrips infestations produce visible signs of damage such as leaf curling and scorching (Natwick & Trumble, 2009) that are easil y recognizable on inspections in Ecuador at places of production. Thrips can also be detec ted at port s of entry to the United States by

inspection. Meal ybugs are visible on inspection, and build

- ups in production sites are readil y detected ( Frank, 2010 ). Outbreaks of Lepidoptera pests in pest exclusionary structures can be readily detected, and are rare under good agricultural practices. Lepidoptera larvae leave visible signs when boring into the pepper fruit which mak es detection upon inspection likely ( Eiras & Blackmer, 2003; EPPO, 2011 ). Tuta absoluta may attack peppers, but they feed on the foliage and have not been reported b or ing into pepper fruits ( EPPO, 2005 ). Puccinia pampeana produce s conspicuous s ymptoms and signs ( Agrios, 2004; Hernández & Hennen, 200 3; Lindquist, 1982 ) that are easil y recognizable on inspections in Ecuador as we ll asat U.S. port s of entry inspections. Andean potato mottle virus w as rated as medium risk potential in the PRA , but the likelihood of establishment (contact with host material) is low . S ince the virus is not transmitted by seeds and is transmitted ma inly by vectors ( Diabrotica sp p . ) (Pernezny et al., 2003 ; USDA, 2011 ) with historically few vector interceptions on peppers (USDA, 20 11 ) , APHIS consider s pre - harvest inspection of the growing site an appropriate mitigation. I f the sites are found to be in fected, the Ecuadorian NPPO may allow export s from the production site only

after the determination that the risk mitigation has been achieved

. Ecuador peppers produced under this sy stems approach will also be subject to packing house inspection and inspe ction by the Department of Homeland Securit y Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the U.S. ports of entry

. Infested or infected fruit will be rejected, and trace back will be accomplished by APHIS and the NPPO of Ecuador to identify and correct problems including removal of the packinghouse or area of produ ction from the export program. A sy stems approach can provide an alternative to single measures to meet the appropriate level of phy tosanitary protection, or can be developed to provide phy tosanitary pr otection in situations in which no single measure is available (IPPC, 2002). Fresh peppers from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua have been produced and exported to the United States under a s ys tems approach for fruit flies for o ver four ye ars with no interceptions of program pests ( AQAS , 20 11 ). Pest

- exclusionary

greenhouses remove pests from production sites and culling removes damaged and infest ed

/infected fruit at the packing house. As part of a s ys tems approach these measure s are effective at lowering pest populations. No fruit flies have been intercepted on produce coming from pest exclusionary structures in any

of the programs for peppers or tomatoes. **Summary** There are several risk management measures available for the h igh

- risk pests identified above that will permit the importation of pepper from Ecuador while satisfy ing the appropriate level of phy tosanitary protection for the United States. A sy stems approach utilizing pest

- exclusion greenhouse as described above , emp loy ing a combination of measures acting independentl y , also mitigates risk and provides an acceptable level of phy tosanitary protection. P est

- free places of production as well as packinghouse and port of entry inspections provide the level of phy tosanitar y s ecurit y required by the United States.

**Au thors**  Walter Gould, Senior Risk Manager APHI S

- PPQ Jos é R. Hern ández, Senior Risk Manager APHI S

- PPQ**References**

Agrios, G. N. 2004. P lant Pathology

. Fifth Edition. D epartment of Plant Pathology , Unive rsit y of Florida

. Elsevier Academic Press, San Diego. 922 pp. AQAS . 2011

. Agricultural Quarantine Activit y System Pest Interception Database. USDA

APHI S

- PPQ. Last access ed July 20 11

. Bosland, P. W. 1996. Capsicums: Innovative uses of an ancient c rop. Pages 479

- 487 in J. Janick, (ed.). Progress in new crops. ASHS Press, Arlington, VA. U.S.A. Eiras, A.E. and J.L . Blackmer. 2003. E closion time and larval behavior of the tomato fruit borer, Neoleucinodes elegantalis (Guenée) (Lepidoptera: Crambi dae)

. Scientia Agricola 60 ( 1 ): 195

- 197

. EPPO. 2005. Tuta abosoluta . Data sheets on quarantine pests. European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization. Bulletin OEPP/EPPO Bulletin 35 : 434

–435

. http://www.eppo.org/QUARANTINE/insects/Tuta_absoluta/DS_Tuta_absoluta.pdf EPPO. 2011. Spodoptera littoralis and Spodoptera litura. Data sheets on quarantine pests. European and Mediterranean Plant Protection O rganization. http://www.eppo.org/QUARANTINE/insects/Spodoptera_litura/PRODLI_ds.pdf accessed July

2011. Eshbaugh, W. H. 1993. Peppers: History and exploitation of a serendipitous new crop discovery

. Pages 132

- 139 in J. Janick and J. E. Simon, (eds.). New Crops. Wiley , New York, U.S.A. Frank, S.D. 2010. Mealy bugs. Ornamentals and Turf Department of Entomology I nsect Note, North Carolina State University , North Carolina Cooperative Extension. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/ent/notes/O&T/flowers/note19/note19.html accessed July 2011. Hernández, J.R. and Hennen , J.F. 2003. Ru st fungi causing galls, witch’s brooms, and other abnormal plant growths in Northwestern Argentina. My cologia 95: 728

- 755. IPPC. 1996. Requirements for the establishment of pest free areas. International Standards for Phy tosanitary Measures No. 4. Se cretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization , Rome. IPPC. 1999. Requirements for the establishment of pest free places of production and pest free production sites. In ternational Standards for Ph yt osanitary Measures No. 10. Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization , Rome

.IPPC. 2002. The use of integrated measures in a sy stems approach for pest risk management.

International Standards for Phy tosanitary Measures No. 14. Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization , Rome

. Lindquist , J.C. 1982. Roy as de la República Argentina y zonas limítrofes. In stituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria. Buenos Aires. 574 pp. Natwick, E.T. and J.T. Trumble. 2009. UC I PM Pest Management Guidelines: Peppers UC ANR Publication 3460 In sects and Mites

. http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r604300711.html accessed July 2011. Pernezny , K., P. D. Roberts, J. F. Murphy and N. P. Goldberg (eds.). 2003. Compendium of Pepper Diseases. APS Press, St. Paul, MN. 88pp. USDA. 2000. Guidelines for Pathway

- Initiate d Pest Risk Assessments, Version 5.02. USDA, APHI S, PPQ

. 31pp. USDA . 20 1 2

. 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

. A Qualitative, Pathway

- Initiated Risk Analy sis. July 2 2 , 20 11

. Plant Epidemiology and Risk Analy sis Laboratory , Center for Plant Health Science and Technology , Plant Protection and Quarantine, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Servi ce. 120 pp. Walsh, B. M., and S. B. Hoot. 2001. Phylogenetic relationships of Capsicum (Solanaceae) using DNA sequences from two noncoding regions: the chloroplast atpB

- rbcLspacer region and nuclear wax y introns. International Journal of Plant Scien ces 1 62 : 1409

- 1418.