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RuleSignificantE7-137082007-07-18

Revision of Fruits and Vegetables Import Regulations

Agriculture Department, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

Abstract

We are revising and reorganizing the regulations pertaining to the importation of fruits and vegetables to consolidate requirements of general applicability and eliminate redundant requirements, update terms and remove outdated requirements and references, update the regulations that apply to importations into territories under U.S. administration, and make various editorial and nonsubstantive changes to regulations to make them easier to use. We are also making substantive changes to the regulations, including: Establishing criteria that, if met, will allow us to approve certain new fruits and vegetables for importation into the United States and to acknowledge pest-free areas in foreign countries more effectively and expeditiously and doing away with the practice of listing in the regulations specific commodities that may be imported subject to certain types of phytosanitary measures. These changes are intended to simplify and expedite our processes for approving certain new imports and pest-free areas while continuing to allow for full public participation in the processes. This rule revises the structure of the fruits and vegetables import regulations and establishes a new process for approving certain new commodities for importation into the United States. It does not, however, allow the importation of any specific new fruits or vegetables, nor does it alter the conditions for importing currently approved fruits or vegetables except as specifically described in this document. To the extent that our trading partners consider the length of time it takes to conduct the rulemaking process a trade barrier, these changes may facilitate the export of U.S. agricultural commodities by reducing that time for fruits and vegetables that meet this rule's criteria. The changes do not alter the manner in which the risk associated with a commodity import request is evaluated, nor do they alter the manner in which those risks are ultimately mitigated.

Action & Dates

Action
Final rule.
Dates
August 17, 2007.

CFR References

Topics

Agricultural commoditiesCoffeeCottonCustoms duties and inspectionFruitsImportsNursery stockPlant diseases and pestsQuarantineReporting and recordkeeping requirementsRiceTransportationVegetables

Document Excerpt

Document Headings Document headings vary by document type but may contain the following: the agency or agencies that issued and signed a document the number of the CFR title and the number of each part the document amends, proposes to amend, or is directly related to the agency docket number / agency internal file number the RIN which identifies each regulatory action listed in the Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions See the Document Drafting Handbook for more details. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service 7 CFR Parts 305, 319, and 352 [Docket No. APHIS-2005-0106] RIN 0579-AB80 AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA. ACTION: Final rule. SUMMARY: We are revising and reorganizing the regulations pertaining to the importation of fruits and vegetables to consolidate requirements of general applicability and eliminate redundant requirements, update terms and remove outdated requirements and references, update the regulations that apply to importations into territories under U.S. administration, and make various editorial and nonsubstantive changes to regulations to make them easier to use. We are also making substantive changes to the regulations, including: Establishing criteria that, if met, will allow us to approve certain new fruits and vegetables for importation into the United States and to acknowledge pest-free areas in foreign countries more effectively and expeditiously and doing away with the practice of listing in the regulations specific commodities that may be imported subject to certain types of phytosanitary measures. These changes are intended to simplify and expedite our processes for approving certain new imports and pest-free areas while continuing to allow for full public participation in the processes. This rule revises the structure of the fruits and vegetables import regulations and establishes a new process for approving certain new commodities for importation into the Unit

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Related Documents

Other Federal Register documents from the same docket.

Full Document

Citation: 72 FR 39482