Goiás expands number of cities able to export watermelon, cantaloupe, and pumpkin to Mercosur

The municipality of Itapirapuã, in Western Goiás, has been officially recognized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa) as fit to export cucurbits (watermelon, melon, pumpkin, among others) to Mercosur countries. This achievement is the result of the joint work between the Goiás Agricultural Defense Agency (Agrodefesa), rural producers, and technical managers. With the new recognition, Goiás now has 19 cities certified for the export of this type of crop. The recognition was granted by Ordinance SDA/Mapa No. 1,418/2025, published in the Official Gazette of the Union on October 7. The document includes the municipality in the Risk Mitigation System (SMR) for the pest Anastrepha grandis, known as the cucurbit fruit fly. To obtain the recognition, the municipality underwent rigorous phytosanitary monitoring in crops, conducted by a technical manager accredited by Agrodefesa, for a minimum period of six months. Based on the data collected, the Agency prepared and sent to ...