The Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food (SAGARPA) published in the Federation's Official Gazette the norm that establish the risk mitigation measures for the import of potato tubers.
This new norm replaces the NOM- 012- FITO- 1996 law, which was issued in the Official Gazette on February 13, 1996 and which was cancelled on March 7 2014.
One of the advantages of the new law is that it will allow the mitigation measures to be adjusted to the changing phytosanitary.
The agreement reiterates the implementation of such mechanisms, in particular that it will be updated based on the recently approved Pest Risk Analysis, which is posted on SENASICA's website: http://senasica.gob.mx/?id=4154
This new regulation helps to reduce the risk of pests entering the country in diverse possible scenarios, such as the illegal diversion of potatoes for consumption or for industrial process to be used as seeds, by including measures to ensure the potato's traceability.
The norm even provides mitigation measures to help prevent the unauthorized use of tubers in case producers decide to use seeds without the appropriate certification.
Some of these measures include that shipments be produced from certified seeds, that packing facility are approved by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO), that the shipments be washed, free of soil, and have received treatment to inhibit sprouting.
Shipments must be packed in packages of 9.09 kilograms (20 pounds) or less, and tagged with the words: "This product should not be used for sowing" from the moment they are inspected until they are exported.
As part of the implementation of mitigation measures, the import of potato for consumption will be controlled via a mechanism to ensure that they arrive at their destination and are used for the declared purpose.
To do this, shipments will be accompanied by official inspectors, from their point of entry to their destination, and importing companies will have to have logs to control inputs, outputs and distribution of the potatoes, all of which will be supervised by the official staff from SENASICA.