Archived - Regulatory Cooperation Council – Plant Health Work Plan 2015

Regulatory area to be addressed

Plant Health

The CFIA and USDA-Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) will continue to advance a perimeter approach to plant protection (PAPP) to protect Canada and the U.S. from the unintentional introduction of pests and invasive alien species through movement of plants and plant products through equivalent approaches to regulatory compliance and enforcement and information sharing. This will include the alignment of phytosanitary import requirements and related systems wherever possible and streamlining of the certification processes for plants and products flowing between Canada and the U.S.

Department/Agency

United States 

United States Department of Agriculture – Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA – APHIS)

Canada 

Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA)

Work stream A

Binational implementation of ISPM 15

In order to prevent the spread of serious pest risks associated with the movement in trade of untreated wood packaging between the U.S. and Canada, the countries are seeking to:

• Develop a bilaterally harmonized, trade sensitive approach (e.g. delayed enforcement) to the adoption of the regulatory requirements for wood packaging moving between Canada and the U.S. in keeping with ISPM 15, Regulation of wood packaging in international trade
• Undertake effective cooperation in outreach resulting in a cross-border trading sector fully capable of meeting the requirements at the time regulations are fully enforced

Work stream B

Post-Entry Quarantine

Certain plant taxa from designated countries must be grown for up to two years under specific post-entry quarantine (PEQ) conditions to be eligible for importation into the United States, as per CFR 319.37-7. This also applies to these plants if they first enter Canada prior to re-export to the United States. APHIS recognition of PEQ conducted under CFIA oversight as meeting U.S. phytosanitary import requirements would facilitate trade in these plant taxa and provide additional assurance to the U.S. of the safety of these products. The goal of this project is for CFIA and APHIS to develop and implement a process for plant taxa grown in Canada that require post-entry quarantine to be recognized by the United States as meeting U.S. phytosanitary import requirements. The process will include mechanisms for clear communication between APHIS, CFIA and stakeholders to ensure successful implementation and operation over the long term.

Work stream C

Electronic Certification

Phytosanitary certificates are official documents issued by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of the exporting country to the NPPO of the importing country to indicate that consignments of plants, plant products or other regulated articles meet specified phytosanitary import requirements. Electronic exchange of certificates (e-Cert) would increase the efficiency of the exchange of certificates between importing and exporting countries, improve reporting and security of the transmission of the certificates, and reduce the opportunity for fraudulent activity. APHIS and CFIA will build upon existing initiatives within our respective countries towards implementing a mechanism that will allow electronic exchange of phytosanitary certificates (e-Phyto). In the United States, the Phytosanitary Certificate Issuance and Tracking (PCIT) system tracks the inspection of agricultural commodities and certifies compliance with plant health standards of importing countries. This capability provides USDA/APHIS/PPQ better security, reporting functions, and monitoring capabilities for exported commodities.  In Canada, the Electronic Service Delivery Platform (ESDP) is currently under development for Canada's major trading partners and is intended to provide an electronic system that will enable industry to more readily access CFIA programs and conduct regular business transactions, using secure information exchange protocols. Significant work has already been undertaken, and continues to occur outside of RCC, to develop a project plan for ESDP, including the identification of business requirements, time frames and stakeholder communication to ensure their business requirements are being addressed. The focus of this work plan will be to further streamline the efficient export and import of plants and plant products through electronic certification processes by identifying priorities, technical options for the exchange of electronic certificates.