The U.S. Foreign Agricultural Service said China has decided that vessels originating from the United States, other than the state of Florida, do not require disinsection certification.
China has now decided that vessels originating from the United States, other than the state of Florida, do not require disinsection certification, according to an update from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA)Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS).
“There is a great relief among our membership,” said Peter Friedmann,
executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition (AgTC), a group
that represents U.S. exporters of farm and forest products. “There was a
lot of energy put into finding means of compliance – fumigators,
identifying the kinds of chemical that would be acceptable, and locations
where this could be done. There’s great relief that this will not have
to be done now.”
China began requiring shipments from U.S. states
to present certificates proving disinsection (treatment to eliminate
insects) on Aug. 2 after the World Health Organization’s (WHO)
listing of the United States as a country reporting mosquito-borne Zika
virus transmission. Previously, the only places in the U.S. from which
China was requiring inspections were Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin
Islands.
A notice from the USDA’s FAS said, “On Sept. 2, China’s General Administration of Quality
Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) stated that it has
decided to regionalize its Zika requirements for shipments of cargo from
the United States based on a risk-assessment performed by AQSIQ, using
data supplied by U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
AQSIQ experts determined that due to the low risk of Zika transmission
through shipments of cargo, vessels originating from the United States,
other than the state of Florida, do not require disinsection
certification.”
FAS added, “However, if during the course of
routine sampling and inspection, local CIQ officials discover any adult
mosquitoes, eggs, larva or infected cases, the vessel and its contents
will be subject to the full Zika requirements described below. Also, if
a vessel loads or unloads in Florida or a Zika infected country, it is
subject to the full requirements.”
FAS however, cautioned its
update “is not official USDA guidance” and that “final import approval
of any product is subject to the importing country’s rules and
regulations as interpreted by border officials at the time of product
entry.”
Abigail Struxness, program manager for AgTC, said U.S.
exporters are closely watching individual ports in China “to make sure
they’re aware of the new terms and they are not accidentally enforcing
something that no longer applies.”
As of Aug. 31, the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control said there were 2,722 cases of Zika in the
U.S., with 2,686 associated with travel, 35 locally
transmitted and one acquired in a laboratory. In U.S. territories, there
were 14,110 cases, 14,059 locally acquired and 51 associated with
travel.
China modifies inspection rule aimed at Zika
