After the proposal formulated by the Government, Brazil pledged to lift the ban on the entry of pears, apples and quince, which was imposed on the Argentine fruit in the last month and that was justified because of the existence of a plague. Officials are confident that the decision will be made today, but other spokesmen believe that it will take a couple of weeks.
The situation of the Cydia pomonella plague, a regional moth, isn't different than in previous years, so the Argentine authorities have asked the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture to lift the ban, as they consider it to be a non-tariff barrier.
The Ministry of agriculture, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the head of Cabinet demanded that the authorities of Brazil revisited and lifted the ban on imports of Argentine fresh fruits, i.e. apples, pears and quince.
According to sources, it is possible that officials of the Ministry of agriculture, livestock and food supply (MAPA) of Brazil, have to travel to Argentina "to expose the political or technical reasons of the ban until a corresponding audit is carried out."
The Argentine authorities also said that the zero tolerance term published on the website of the Brazilian MAPA was incompatible with international trade and the regulatory framework of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and of Mercosur, to which both countries belong.
They also noted that the health services of both countries have been working for years to minimize the sanitary and phytosanitary risks without affecting bilateral trade.
The current trade of apples, pears and quinces from Argentina to Brazil is covered by a bilateral agreement that, through a program, provides a guarantee on plant protection to the neighbouring country.
Additionally, the audits carried out by inspectors from Brazil have given favourable results and Argentina has immediately taken into account and implemented the specific recommendations made by the Auditors.
According to Senasa, Argentina exported more than 137,000 tons and more than 49,000 tons of pears and apples, respectively, to Brazil in 2014.
Source: diariobae. com