The measures pertain to potato shipments from Prince Edward Island
The USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) changed rules around potato imports from Prince Edward Island to protect American agriculture from potato wart.
Beginning Oct. 5, American facilities handling bulk shipments (50 pounds or heavier) of potatoes from P.E.I. must adhere to an updated list of conditions.
These include:
- Imports of cull potatoes for animal feed are prohibited
- Potato waste from processing and packaging must be disposed of
- Full traceability back to the production site and the packaging shed of origin
- Potatoes must be washed to remove excess soil
These actions are “necessary because APHIS has determined that the entry and establishment of S. endobioticum (potato wart) poses a serious threat to agriculture in the United States,” APHIS said in an Aug. 21 notice.
The National Potato Council is happy with the announced measures.
The fungus responsible for potato wart can live in the soil for more than 40 years.
Being proactive to prevent spread into the U.S. is important.
“This action is another step in ensuring that this virulent disease never becomes established in our country, thereby avoiding billions of dollars in negative economic impact and thousands of job losses to America’s family potato farms and the communities they support,” Kam Quarles, CEO of the NPC, said in a statement.
The U.S. has shut its borders to P.E.I. potatoes because of potato wart multiple times before.
The most recent occurred in the fall of 2021 after the disease was found in two P.E.I. fields. Table potato exports to the U.S. from P.E.I. resumed in April 2022.
Another incident happened in October 2000 and kept P.E.I. potatoes out of the U.S. for six months.
Potato wart has entered the U.S. in the past.
This occurred in Pennsylvania in 1918 and spread to Maryland and West Virginia.
The disease was eradicated in the U.S. in 1994 and hasn’t been detected since, APHIS says.