USDA considers West African tomato imports

USDA considers West African tomato imports    The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has proposed amending its fruits and vegetables regulations to allow the import of tomatoes from the member countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) into the continental United States.
   As a condition of entry, ECOWAS tomatoes would be subject to a 'systems approach' that would require pest exclusion at the production site, fruit fly trapping and monitoring, and procedures for packing the tomatoes. The tomatoes would also require a phytosanitary certificate issued by the national plant protection organization of the exporting country with an additional declaration that the tomatoes had been produced in accordance with the proposed requirements.
   ECOWAS member countries are Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Togo.
   'This action would allow for the importation of tomatoes from the ECOWAS into the continental United States while continuing to provide protection against the introduction of quarantine pests,' the USDA agency said.
   APHIS will accept public comments related to the proposed rule through Oct. 3. For more details, access the Federal Register notice.