The European Commission (EC) amended Decision 2016/715 to include Argentina in the countries (Brazil, South Africa, and Uruguay) that need to comply with special measures when exporting their citrus fruits to the EU to prevent the introduction and spread of the "Phyllosticta citricarpa" (black spot) within the Union.
The new regulations - the Implementing Decision (EU) 2017/801, which was published in the Official Journal of the European Union (EUTL), stipulate that the measures on Argentine citrus fruit shipments will start applying from the 5th of June.
According to the text, since Decision 2016/715 was adopted, "Member States have repeatedly notified interceptions of 'Phyllosticta citricarpa', following their inspections of imports of fruits originating from Argentina."
"The EC has evaluated these recurrent interceptions and has come to the conclusion that phytosanitary controls in Argentina aren't stringent enough to guarantee the absence of 'Phyllosticta citricarpa', a harmful organism that can pose a significant threat to the European Union's citrus cultivation."
As of June 5, all Argentine citrus imports must be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate and a supplementary declaration confirming that the orchards where they were grown underwent treatments against the 'Phyllosticta citricarpa' after the beginning of the last vegetative cycle.
That declaration must also specify that the production plot has undergone an appropriate official inspection during the growing season and that no black patches have been observed on the fruit.
The new provision also makes it compulsory for Argentinian citrus fruit destined for the Community market to declare that producers took a 600-fruit sample of each species for every 30 tons when the fruit was transported to the packing facilities confirming that they do not have the disease.
Source: Efeagro