Pest risk assessments delay UK plant exports to the United States
Trade barrier summary
This affects UK exports of ornamental plants to the United States. US legislation requires formal import authorisation and pest risk assessments for all food crops, including edible fruit and vegetables. These can cause delays.
For ornamental plants, import may be allowed without pest risk assessment. However, so-called NAPPRA products (not approved pending pest risk analysis) can't be imported into the market before phytosanitary requirements are decided on by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) and included in US import legislation.
This procedure can take several years. For some products, procedures have lasted more than 25 years before market access has been granted. UK exporters have found the added costs can exclude them from the US market.
Sectors affected
- Agriculture, horticulture, fisheries and pets
Resolved
No
Date reported
29 July 2019
Last updated
18 December 2020
Public ID
PID-GYJV7G
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