Federal Register, Volume 78 Issue 188 (Friday, September 27, 2013)

[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 188 (Friday, September 27, 2013)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 59628-59632]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-23667]

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Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.

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Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 188 / Friday, September 27, 2013 /
Proposed Rules

[[Page 59628]]

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

7 CFR Part 319

[Docket No. APHIS-2013-0037]
RIN 0579-AD78

Importation of Potatoes From Mexico

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Proposed rule.

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SUMMARY: We are proposing to amend the regulations concerning the
importation of fruits and vegetables to allow the importation of fresh
potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) from Mexico into the United States. As
a condition of entry, the potatoes would have to be produced in
accordance with a systems approach employing a combination of
mitigation measures to prevent the introduction and dissemination of
plant pests into the United States. The potatoes would have to be
imported in commercial consignments, would have to be produced by a
grower who is registered in a certification program, would have to be
packed in registered packinghouses, would have to be washed, cleaned,
and treated with a sprout inhibitor, and would have to be inspected
after packing for quarantine pests. The potatoes would also have to be
accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate that declares that the
conditions for importation have been met. Finally, the national plant
protection organization (NPPO) of Mexico would have to provide a
bilateral workplan to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
(APHIS) that details the activities that the NPPO of Mexico will carry
out to meet these requirements, subject to APHIS' approval. This action
would allow the importation of potatoes from Mexico while continuing to
protect against the introduction of plant pests into the United States.

DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before
November 26, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2013-0037-0001.
Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2013-0037, 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-2013-
0037 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. David Lamb, Regulatory Policy
Specialist, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 133, Riverdale, MD 20737-
1231; (301) 851-2018.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The regulations in ``Subpart-Fruits and Vegetables'' (7 CFR 319.56-
1 through 319.56-61, 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.
Currently, the regulations do not allow the importation of fresh
potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) from Mexico. The national plant
protection organization (NPPO) of Mexico has requested that the Animal
and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) amend the regulations to
allow fresh potatoes from Mexico to be imported into the United States.
As part of our evaluation of Mexico'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, from Mexico into the United States,
of Potato, Solanum tuberosum, Tubers Intended for Consumption, A
Pathway-Initiated Commodity Risk Assessment'' (April 2011), evaluates
the risks associated with the importation of fresh potatoes from Mexico
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 potatoes from Mexico.
The PRA identifies eight quarantine pests present in Mexico that
could be introduced into the United States through the importation of
potatoes:
Copitarsia decolora (Guen[eacute]e), a moth.
Epicaerus cognatus Sharp, potato weevil.
Nacobbus aberrans (Thorne) Thorne & Allen, false root-knot
nematode.
Ralstonia solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 (Smith) Yabuuchi et
al., a bacterium that causes brown rot of potato.\1\
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\1\ The PRA refers to this pest as ``Ralstonia solanacearum race
3'' because the taxonomic community customarily uses this term to
refer to Ralstonia solanacearum race 3 biovar 2. However, R.
solanacearum race 3 biovar 1 also exists in Mexico and could follow
the pathway on potatoes from Mexico into the United States, but is
not a pest of quarantine significance to the United States. To
reflect this fact, and to clarify that the proposed regulations are
not intended to address this biovar, we refer to the pest as
Ralstonia solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 throughout this document.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rosellinia bunodes (Berk. & Broome) Sacc., a pathogenic
fungus.
R. pepo Pat., a pathogenic fungus.
Synchytrium endobioticum (Schilb.) Percival, a pathogenic
fungus that causes potato wart disease.
Thecaphora solani (Thirum. & M. O'Brien) Mordue, a
pathogenic fungus that causes potato smut.
The PRA also identifies Globodera rostochiensis, golden cyst
nematode, as a quarantine pest that exists in Mexico, and determines
that this pest is unlikely to follow the pathway only because it is
under official control within Mexico.
A quarantine pest is defined in Sec. 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

[[Page 59629]]

controlled. Plant pest risk potentials associated with the importation
of fresh potatoes from Mexico into the United States were derived 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 determined that three of these eight
pests--N. aberrans, R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, and S.
endobioticum--pose a high risk of following the pathway of fresh
potatoes from Mexico into the United States and having negative effects
on U.S. agriculture. The remaining five pests--C. decolora, E.
cognatus, R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani--were rated as having a
medium risk potential.
Based on the conclusions of the PRA and the RMD, we are proposing
to allow the importation of potatoes from Mexico into the United States
subject to a systems approach. The conditions in the systems approach
that we are proposing are described below. These conditions would be
added to the regulations in a new Sec. 319.56-62.

Bilateral Workplan

Proposed paragraph (a) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require the NPPO of
Mexico to provide a bilateral 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 Sec. 319.56-
62. The bilateral workplan would have to include and describe in detail
any requirements in proposed Sec. 319.56-62 that specifically refer to
the bilateral workplan.
A bilateral workplan is an agreement 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 comply with
our regulations governing the import or export of a specific commodity.
Bilateral workplans apply only to the signatory parties and establish
detailed procedures and guidance for the day-to-day operations of
specific import/export programs. Bilateral 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 a bilateral
workplan to be developed.

Commercial Consignments

Proposed paragraph (b) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require potatoes
from Mexico to be imported only in commercial consignments. Produce
grown commercially is less likely to be infested with plant pests than
noncommercial shipments. Noncommercial shipments 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. Commercial consignments, as defined in
Sec. 319.56-2 of the regulations, are consignments that an inspector
identifies as having been imported for sale and distribution. Such
identification is based on a variety of indicators, including, but not
limited to: Quantity of produce, type of packaging, identification of
grower or packinghouse on the packaging, and documents consigning the
fruits or vegetables to a wholesaler or retailer.

Certification Program

Proposed paragraph (c) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require the
potatoes to be produced by a grower who is registered in a
certification program administered by the NPPO of Mexico. At a minimum,
the program would have to require the producer to use only seed that
has been certified by the NPPO of Mexico as free of R. solanacearum
race 3 biovar 2, R. bunodes, R. pepo, S. endobioticum, and T. solani to
produce the potatoes. The certification program would also have to
require the potatoes to be grown in an enclosed environment or
alternatively would have to require the field in which the potatoes are
grown to be surveyed for quarantine pests and tested for R.
solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 at regular intervals. The nature of these
intervals and other requirements of the program that are jointly agreed
upon by APHIS and the NPPO of Mexico would be contained in the
bilateral workplan.
Seed certification for potatoes is based on a generational process.
As part of this process, a small quantity of seed is used as nuclear
stock and grown over several growing seasons. Potatoes produced from
this seed are inspected and tested at regular intervals for quarantine
pests. If all generations of potatoes produced during these growing
seasons are determined to be free of quarantine pests, the seed may be
certified as being free of quarantine pests and commercially
distributed.
We would require the use of certified seed because R. solanacearum
race 3 biovar 2 and S. endobioticum can remain viable in a hospitable
environment for an extended period of time. We would also do so because
potatoes may be infected with R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani for a
period of time before there is external evidence of this infection. The
generational process associated with seed certification provides
sufficient time to determine whether any of the nuclear stock seed is
infected with these pests.
We would require the potatoes to be produced in an enclosed
environment or, alternatively, would require the field in which the
potatoes are grown to be surveyed for quarantine pests because most of
the pests of quarantine significance that could follow the pathway on
potatoes from Mexico are soil-borne, and because the most virulent of
these pests, R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, can spread quickly
through both water and soil. For this latter reason, if the potatoes
are produced in a field, we would require the field to be tested for R.
solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 at regular intervals.

Registered Packinghouses

Proposed paragraph (d) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require the
potatoes to be packed for export in packinghouses that are registered
with the NPPO of Mexico and to which the NPPO of Mexico has assigned a
unique identifying number. Such registration would facilitate traceback
of a consignment of potatoes 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. We discuss such
traceback procedures at greater length later in this document.

Post-Harvest Cleaning and Treatment

Proposed paragraph (e) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require that, after
harvest but prior to packing, the potatoes be washed, cleaned of soil
and debris, and treated with a sprout inhibitor in accordance with the
bilateral workplan. Washing and cleaning would remove soil and plant
debris, two potential sources of introduction of quarantine pests, from
the potatoes. Washing would also remove any C. decolora on the
potatoes, since the moth is an external feeder.
We would require treatment with sprout inhibitors because, once a
potato has begun to sprout, it is propagative material that can easily
be used as a plant for planting. The risk assessment that we prepared
evaluated only the risk of potatoes from Mexico imported into the
United States for human consumption, and, in general, the plant pest
risk associated with plants for planting tends to be higher than that
associated with plants and plant parts intended for human consumption.

[[Page 59630]]

Post-Harvest Inspections

Proposed paragraph (f) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require a biometric
sample to be taken from each consignment of potatoes destined for
export to the United States in accordance with a protocol jointly
agreed upon by APHIS and the NPPO of Mexico and specified within the
bilateral workplan. The sample would have to be visually inspected for
evidence of sprouting, as well as evidence of C. decolora, E. cognatus,
N. aberrans, R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani. It would also require
a portion of the potatoes in the sample to be cut open, inspected for
evidence of E. cognatus, N. aberrans, R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2,
and T. solani, and submitted to a laboratory approved by the NPPO of
Mexico for testing for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2. The potatoes
could not be shipped to the United States until the results of this
testing are obtained. If any of the potatoes are found to be sprouting,
or any evidence of these quarantine pests is found, or any potatoes
have non-negative test results for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, the
entire consignment of potatoes would be prohibited from importation
into the United States.
Potatoes infected with R. bunodes and R. pepo exhibit signs of rot
and fungal growths, and potatoes infected with T. solani become
misshapen or covered with wart-like galls. Additionally, as mentioned
above, C. decolora is an external feeder. Visual inspection should
therefore be able to identify any potatoes that are infected with R.
bunodes, R. pepo, or T. solani, or infested with C. decolora.
Additionally, although E. cognatus and N. aberrans are internal
feeders, potatoes that are heavily infested with these pests may
exhibit some external symptoms of this infestation.
By cutting the potatoes open, evidence of infestation with E.
cognatus and N. aberrans would become apparent, as would any galling
caused by T. solani. R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 attacks the
vascular system of host plants and causes the collapse of vascular
tissue; if the vascular tissues of the potatoes have begun to collapse
because of R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, this would likewise be
apparent when the potatoes are cut open. However, because R.
solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 may have already infected a plant before
symptoms of vascular collapse appear, and because R. solanacearum race
3 biovar 2 is an especially virulent pest, we would also require the
potatoes to be tested for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 with negative
results at a laboratory approved by the NPPO of Mexico.
We would require the potatoes not to exhibit evidence of sprouting
because, as we mentioned above, sprouting potatoes are propagative and
can easily be used as plants for planting.

Sealed Means of Conveyance

Proposed paragraph (g) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require each
consignment of potatoes shipped from Mexico to the United States to be
transported following inspection from the packinghouse to the port of
first arrival into the United States in a means of conveyance sealed
with an agricultural seal affixed by an individual authorized by the
NPPO of Mexico to do so. This requirement is necessary to prevent
quarantine pests from being introduced into consignments of potatoes
during transit to the United States.
If the seal is broken en route, an inspector at the port of first
arrival would take remedial measures jointly agreed to by APHIS and the
NPPO of Mexico and specified in the bilateral workplan. The measures
specified in the workplan would depend on whether the inspector
determines the integrity of the consignment itself to have been
compromised; if so, whether this has resulted in the introduction of
plant pests into the consignment during transit; and, if so, whether
any of these pests are quarantine pests.

Phytosanitary Certificate

Proposed paragraph (h) of Sec. 319.56-62 would require each
consignment of potatoes shipped from Mexico to the United States to be
accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate, issued by the NPPO of
Mexico, that states that the potatoes do not come from an area of
Mexico regulated by the NPPO of Mexico for G. rostochiensis; have been
produced from seed certified free of R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2,
R. bunodes, R. pepo, S. endobioticum, and T. solani; have been
inspected for C. decolora, E. cognatus, N. aberrans, R. solanacearum
race 3 biovar 2, R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani; have been tested
for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2; and based on this inspection and
testing, have been found free of those pests. The phytosanitary
certificate would also have to specify the number of the packinghouse
in which the potatoes were packed.
Because G. rostochiensis is a quarantine pest within the United
States, we would prohibit the importation of potatoes from areas of
Mexico regulated for G. rostochiensis into the United States in order
to prevent additional introductions of the pest into the United States.
The proposed phytosanitary certificate requirements reflect that
prohibition.

Traceback Procedures

Proposed paragraph (i) of Sec. 319.56-62 would establish traceback
procedures if quarantine pests are discovered on potatoes from Mexico
at a port of first arrival into the United States. In the event that
this occurs, the potatoes would be traced back to the packinghouse in
which they were packed using the packinghouse number specified on the
phytosanitary certificate.
The packinghouse would be required to identify the grower from
which the potatoes originated, and the grower would be required to
identify the place of production in which the potatoes were grown. That
place of production would be suspended from the export program for
potatoes to the United States for the remainder of the shipping season.
If the grower is unable to identify the place of production in
which the potatoes were grown, that grower would be suspended from the
export program for the remainder of the shipping season.
Finally, if the packinghouse is unable to identify the grower from
which the potatoes originated, that packinghouse would be suspended
from the export program for potatoes to the United States for the
remainder of the shipping season.

Executive Order 12866 and Regulatory Flexibility Act

This 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.
We have prepared an economic analysis for this rule. The economic
analysis provides a cost-benefit analysis, as required by Executive
Order 12866, and an analysis of the potential economic effects of this
action on small entities, as required by the Regulatory Flexibility
Act. The economic 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 Small Business Administration's small-entity standard for U.S.
farms that produce potato tubers is annual receipts of not more than
$750,000. In 2007, the average market value of sales by the 15,014 U.S.
farms that produced

[[Page 59631]]

potatoes was about $222,000, well below the small-entity standard.
In recent years, the United States has shifted from being a net
importer to being a net exporter of fresh or chilled table potatoes.
U.S. average annual net supply from 2008 to 2010 (marketed production
plus imports minus exports) was about 16.6 million metric tons (MT).
Mexico's average annual exports for the same years totaled about 1,500
MT. Even if all of Mexico's exports were diverted to the United States,
they would be equivalent to less than one-hundredth of 1 percent of U.S
net supply.
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 potatoes for consumption to be
imported into the United States from Mexico. If this proposed rule is
adopted, State and local laws and regulations regarding potatoes
imported under this rule would be preempted while the potatoes are in
foreign commerce. Fresh potatoes are 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-
2013-0037. Please send a copy of your comments to: (1) Docket No.
APHIS-2013-0037, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD, APHIS,
Station 3A-03.8, 4700 River Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737-1238,
and (2) Clearance Officer, OCIO, USDA, room 404-W, 14th Street and
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250. A comment to OMB is best
assured of having its full effect if OMB receives it within 30 days of
publication of this proposed rule.
APHIS is proposing to amend the fruits and vegetables regulations
to allow, under certain conditions, the importation into the United
States of commercial consignments of fresh potatoes from Mexico. The
conditions for the importation of fresh potatoes from Mexico include
registration of packinghouses. The potatoes would also be required to
be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of
Mexico with an additional declaration confirming that the potatoes had
been produced in accordance with the proposed requirements. The NPPO of
Mexico would also have to enter into a bilateral workplan with APHIS.
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 2.97 hours per response.
Respondents: National Plant Protection Organization of Mexico,
producers.
Estimated annual number of respondents: 19.
Estimated annual number of responses per respondent: 2.6.
Estimated annual number of responses: 31.
Estimated total annual burden on respondents: 92 hours. (Due to
averaging, the total annual burden hours may not equal the product of
the annual number of responses multiplied by the reporting burden per
response.)
Copies of this information collection can be obtained from Mrs.
Celeste Sickles, APHIS' Information Collection Coordinator, at (301)
851-2908.

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 Mrs. Celeste
Sickles, APHIS' Information Collection Coordinator, at (301) 851-2908.

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

0
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.

0
2. Add Sec. 319.56-62 to read as follows:

Sec. 319.56-62 Potatoes from Mexico.

Fresh potatoes (Solanum tuberosum L.) may be imported into the
United States from Mexico only under the conditions described in this
section. These conditions are designed to prevent the introduction of
the following quarantine pests: Copitarsia decolora (Guen[eacute]e), a
moth; Epicaerus cognatus Sharp, potato weevil; Globodera rostochiensis,
golden cyst nematode; Nacobbus aberrans (Thorne) Thorne & Allen, false
root-knot nematode; Ralstonia solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 (Smith)
Yabuuchi et al., a bacterium that causes brown rot of potato;
Rosellinia bunodes (Berk. & Broome) Sacc., a pathogenic fungus; R. pepo
Pat., a pathogenic fungus; Synchytrium endobioticum (Schilb.) Percival,
a pathogenic fungus that causes potato wart disease; and Thecaphora
solani (Thirum. & M. O'Brien) Mordue, a pathogenic fungus that causes
potato smut.
(a) The national plant protection organization (NPPO) of Mexico
must provide a bilateral workplan to APHIS that details the activities
that the NPPO of Mexico will, subject to APHIS' approval of the
workplan, carry out to

[[Page 59632]]

meet the requirements of this section. The bilateral workplan must
include and describe the quarantine pest survey intervals and other
specific requirements as set forth in this section.
(b) The potatoes may be imported in commercial consignments only.
(c) The potatoes must be produced by a grower who is registered in
a certification program administered by the NPPO of Mexico. The program
must require the producer to use only seed that has been certified by
the NPPO of Mexico as free of R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, R.
bunodes, R. pepo, S. endobioticum, and T. solani to produce the
potatoes. The program must also require the potatoes to be grown in an
enclosed environment or alternatively must require the field in which
the potatoes are grown to be surveyed for quarantine pests and tested
for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2 at regular intervals in accordance
with the bilateral workplan.
(d) The potatoes must be packed for export in packinghouses that
are registered with the NPPO of Mexico and to which the NPPO of Mexico
has assigned a unique identifying number.
(e) After harvest but prior to packing, the potatoes must be
washed, cleaned of soil and debris, and treated with a sprout inhibitor
in accordance with the bilateral workplan.
(f) A biometric sample of potatoes must be taken from each
consignment of potatoes destined for export to the United States in
accordance with a protocol jointly agreed upon by APHIS and the NPPO of
Mexico and specified within the bilateral workplan. The sample must be
visually inspected for evidence of sprouting, as well as evidence of C.
decolora, E. cognatus, N. aberrans, R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani.
A portion of the potatoes must then be cut open, inspected for evidence
of E. cognatus, N. aberrans, R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, and T.
solani, and submitted to a laboratory approved by the NPPO of Mexico
for testing for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2. Potatoes may not be
shipped to the United States until the results of this testing are
obtained. If any potatoes are found to be sprouting, or any evidence of
these quarantine pests is found, or any potatoes have non-negative test
results for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, the entire consignment of
potatoes will be prohibited from importation into the United States.
(g) Each consignment of potatoes shipped from Mexico to the United
States must be transported following inspection from the packinghouse
to the port of first arrival into the United States in a means of
conveyance sealed with an agricultural seal affixed by an individual
authorized by the NPPO of Mexico to do so. If the seal is broken en
route, an inspector at the port of first arrival will take remedial
measures jointly agreed to by APHIS and the NPPO of Mexico and
specified in the bilateral workplan.
(h) Each consignment of potatoes shipped from Mexico to the United
States must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate, issued by
the NPPO of Mexico, that states that that the potatoes do not come from
an area of Mexico regulated by the NPPO of Mexico for G. rostochiensis;
have been produced from seed certified free of R. solanacearum race 3
biovar 2, R. bunodes, R. pepo, S. endobioticum, and T. solani; have
been inspected for C. decolora, E. cognatus, N. aberrans, R.
solanacearum race 3 biovar 2, R. bunodes, R. pepo, and T. solani; have
been tested for R. solanacearum race 3 biovar 2; and based on this
inspection and testing, have been found free of those pests. The
phytosanitary certificate must also specify the number of the
packinghouse in which the potatoes were packed.
(i) If quarantine pests are discovered on potatoes from Mexico at a
port of first arrival into the United States, the potatoes will be
traced back to the packinghouse in which they were packed using the
packinghouse number specified on the phytosanitary certificate.
(1) The packinghouse must identify the grower from which the
potatoes originated, and the grower must identify the place of
production in which the potatoes were grown. That place of production
will be suspended from the export program for potatoes to the United
States for the remainder of the shipping season.
(2) If the grower is unable to identify the place of production in
which the potatoes were grown, that grower will be suspended from the
export program for potatoes to the United States for the remainder of
the shipping season.
(3) If the packinghouse is unable to identify the grower from which
the potatoes originated, that packinghouse will be suspended from the
export program for potatoes to the United States for the remainder of
the shipping season.

Done in Washington, DC, this 24th day of September 2013.
Kevin Shea,
Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2013-23667 Filed 9-26-13; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P