USDA Proposes Changes to Plant Import Regulations

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has proposed to update and streamline its regulations involving the importation of plants for planting.

Some of the proposed changes include requiring permits for the importation of certain coated or pelleted seeds, and providing for an alternate additional declaration on phytosanitary certificates that accompany plants from countries known to have potato cyst nematodes. The proposed regulations also change provisions specific to certain countries to ensure they reflect the latest information regarding quarantine pests detected in various places.

“The importation of plants from foreign countries has greatly increased in the past 20 years and some of the regulations have not been updated,” said Rebecca Bech, deputy administrator of APHIS’ Plant Protection and Quarantine program, in a written statement. “These proposed changes are necessary to relieve certain restrictions, update existing provisions and to make the regulations easier to understand and implement.”