| | OSP:
The OSP production has had slight changes (new questions: 1.2 for new applicants, 2.3.1). Thus an update of the last OSP version, adding the relevant new questions, will be necessary for the submission of the OSP.
Prohibited commodities:
USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) prohibits certain commodities from entering the United States because they could carry harmful plant pests or disease that could devastate U.S. agriculture and natural sources.This includes certain grains and seeds, such as corn and wheat from Estonia, Kazakhstan, Russia and Ukraine in Eastern Europe.
As a USDA-NOP Accredited Certifier, bio.inspecta is responsible for verifying the admissibility of commodities being exported from certified operations, and may not issue transaction certificates for the commodities named above. Prohibited commodities may be reexported or destroyed upon arrival in the United States by U.S. Customs authorities.
If a country would like to export currently prohibited commodity to the United States, the national plant protection organization of that country must contact APHIS to initiate the commodity import approval process by sending a written request to: Phytosanitary Issues Management, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road, Unit 140, Riverdale, MD 20737-1236.
Fumigation at the border:
There is the possibility of fumigation of the goods enforced by APHIS at the import to the USA, which will automatically lead to a declassification of organic to non-organic of the affected lot.
The list of prohibited commodities is adapted regularly, thus bio.inspecta recommends to check, if there are restrictions for the import before shipping of any goods.
The restrictions for grain and pulses from certain countries stay in place and are unchanged.
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