Spain: The US reopens the border to red peppers from the Almeria greenhouse

The US reopens its doors to the Almeria red pepper after a year of suspension due to the detection of Mediterranean fly larvae from eleven greenhouses in the province. The measure was adopted in December 2022 when Customs and Border Protection inspectors at Kennedy Airport in New York intercepted five live fly larvae in commercial shipments. Spain's National Plant Protection Organization searched eleven greenhouses in Almería and found minor structural damage to the plastic covers of seven of them. These greenhouses had passed official inspections in August 2022, but storms and winds subsequently occurred, causing damage and breakage to the greenhouses, facilitating the entry of the Mediterranean fly. Already in October 2023, a team from the United States Agricultural Health Inspection Service visited those same red pepper growing facilities. It was determined that the Mediterranean fly mitigation measures already met US import requirements. The team also noted that packaging ...