Opening New Markets for U.S. Plant Commodities
Trade directors from PPQ’s Phytosanitary Issues Management staff work closely with U.S. producers and trading partner countries to open and establish new markets for many U.S. commodities. If you are interested in exporting fruits, vegetables, plants, or plant products to another country, please follow the steps below.
Determining Commodity Admissibility
To determine if a commodity is admissible to the trading partner country, first contact the appropriate Phytosanitary Issues Management trade director. Trade directors are the primary points of contact for communications with the National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs) of trading partner countries concerning phytosanitary issues.
If the commodity is admissible, the trade director will provide the trading partner country’s import requirements for the commodity.
If the commodity is not admissible, the trade director will inform you if the trading partner NPPO is conducting a risk analysis or review of market access for the commodity, and, if not, will assist you in determining what needs to be done to obtain market access to the trading partner country for your commodity.
Requesting New Market Access
Each country’s NPPO has a different set of prerequisites and procedures for evaluating new market access requests.
- The NPPO may require that the importer request an import permit with no additional evaluation;
- The NPPO may require a pest list, pre-harvest or field management practices or procedures, post-harvest procedures, mitigation options for phytosanitary pests of concern, and other supporting information; or
- The NPPO may have established procedures to evaluate new market access requests, including the development of risk assessments and evaluation of mitigations for phytosanitary pests of concern.
If the trade director determines that a formal market access request with technical documentation is necessary, you will be asked to write a letter to the appropriate trade director stating your interest in obtaining market access for the new commodity to the importing country. The trade director will then work with you to ensure that the technical documentation is complete and that it meets the requirements of the importing country. As needed, the trade director will also work with representatives from the industry, other PPQ program areas, and with plant protection officials and scientists from the interested U.S. State or States to develop the required documentation for the new market access request.
Upon completion of the technical documentation, the trade director will forward the information to the potential importing country and will work with the NPPO to address any follow-up questions or concerns related to the submitted information. The trade director may also request your assistance in responding.
Following submission of the technical documentation, the trade director will inform you of developments in the importing country NPPO’s evaluation of the market access request. When the trading partner NPPO transmits its requirements for the importation and phytosanitary certification of the commodity, your assistance will be requested to review the requirements and establish whether they are warranted and can be met by the U.S. industry.
More Information
The Phytosanitary Issues Management staff is the recognized National Plant Protection Organization for the United States, acting on behalf of USDA, APHIS, Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ).