Canada Adds 122 Plant Taxa to its Not Authorized Pending Plant Risk Analysis (NAPPRA) List

On July 29, 2013, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) added 122 plant taxa to Canada’s “not authorized pending plant risk analysis” (NAPPRA) list. These plant taxa are considered “host plants of quarantine pests” or “plants as pests” and are not authorized for import into Canada from all or from specific countries pending a plant risk analysis (PRA) by CFIA. The United States, however, is exempt from the NAPPRA requirement for most taxa on the Canadian NAPPRA list if the plant taxa being exported is from the United States or another country not restricted by Canada’s NAPPRA list.

The United States and Canada are working to harmonize NAPPRA lists. However, there are eight plant/host country combinations on Canada’s updated NAPPRA list that don’t completely align with those on the U.S. list, specifically Cotoneaster spp., Datura spp., Ficus spp., Hedera spp., Pinus spp., Quercus spp., Rosa spp., and Rubus spp. Because plants from these eight taxa may be allowed to enter the United States from certain countries, U.S. exporters who export them to Canada must be careful not to ship plants from countries on Canada’s NAPPRA list. For example, the United States allows Quercus imports from France and Canada. Canada allows Quercus imports from the United States, Germany, Japan, and the Netherlands. If a U.S. exporter receives Quercus from France, those plants are not authorized for shipment to Canada (pending a PRA).

Host plants of quarantine pests on Canada’s NAPPRA list that were in the United States prior to July 29, 2013 will still be allowed to ship to Canada, but documentation indicating country of origin and date of entry to the United States may be required. After July 29, 2013, plants imported into the United States from countries on Canada’s NAPPRA list will not be eligible for re-export to Canada from the United States. This also applies to the progeny of plants imported from countries on Canada’s NAPPRA list. These plants and their progeny, no matter how long they are in the United States, will not be considered U.S. origin and may not be exported to Canada. Plants as pests on Canada’s NAPPRA list are not eligible for export to Canada from any country.

Similarly, plants or plant parts from countries on Canada’s “Prohibited Material From Outside the Continental US” list, for example plants with roots from China, cannot be shipped to Canada from a third country regardless of how long the imported plant or plant part has been in the exporting country, including the United States. It is the responsibility of U.S. exporters to familiarize themselves with Canadian import requirements and to correctly identify, on PPQ Form 572, Application for Inspection and Certification of Domestic Plant and Plant Products for Export, the origin of the plants they will be exporting to Canada. Providing false information on this form is a federal offense.

For more information on Canada’s plants for planting import regulations, please see:

• ·         CFIA Directive D-08-04, Plant Protection Import Requirements for Plants and Plant Parts for Planting: “Preventing the Entry and Spread of Regulated Plant Pests Associated with the Plants for Planting Pathway” (http://www.inspection.gc.ca/plants/plant-protection/directives/date/d-08-04/eng/1323752901318/1323753612811)
• ·         “Prohibited Material From Outside the Continental US” (http://www.inspection.gc.ca/plants/plant-protection/imports/prohibited/eng/1343631753070/1343631945361)

Stakeholders may also contact Terri G. Dunahay, Plant Health Trade Director, Canada, with PPQ’s Phytosanitary Issues Management staff at 301-851-2369 or by email at Terri.G.Dunahay@aphis.usda.gov, or Arnold T. Tschanz, Senior Regulatory Policy Specialist, with PPQ’s Permits and Manuals staff at 301-851-2179 or by email at Arnold.T.Tschanz@aphis.usda.gov.