Update: China Updates Zika Requirements, Could Make Some Exemptions
On August 3 China added the U.S. to a list of countries that would be required to guarantee that their cargo is mosquito-free after cases of Zika started to increase. The exact guidelines on how to fulfill these requirements were unclear however, posing challenges to U.S. farm exports.
In recently announced clarifications, China’s Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine (AQSIQ) states it may exempt certain U.S. farm exports from regions that are unaffected by the Zika virus from the regulations, and will conduct a risk assessment “to determine whether to apply a regional approach in its Zika response,” according to USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, reports Capital Press.
Although requirements may differ at various Chinese ports, other clarifications include the exemption of vessels that were bound for China before August 5, and refrigerated containers that maintain temperatures below 59 degrees Fahrenheit.
U.S. containers may be treated with less expensive fogging treatments versus fumigation and China has stated that it will offer the option to treat shipments after arrival for between $30 and $60 per container.
All shipments treated in the U.S. before leaving for China will be required to be guaranteed as being mosquito-free, however, this certification may be given by a third party such as a pest-control operation and not necessarily by the U.S. government.
“We’re hoping that could be a potential work-around,” Abigail Struxness, program manager for the Agriculture Transportation Coalition told Capital Press. “We’re very encouraged Chinese customs (officials) are looking at a regionalization [sic] approach.”
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As America deals with reports from Florida of mounting mosquito-borne Zika infections, as of August 3, China has added the U.S. to a list of countries that are required to guarantee that their cargo is mosquito-free.
China initially announced a list of 40 countries on March 2 that would be required to fumigate and guarantee mosquito-free shipments, however, the U.S. was not included at that time.
USA Today reports that a trade advisory issued by the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), one of the largest shipping lines in the world states that China’s General Administration of Quality, Supervision, Inspection, and Quarantine has issued the requirement stating, “With immediate effect, it means that there is a need to provide a certificate of extermination of mosquito. If no certificate is provided, the buyer must fumigate the cargo at arrival at port of destination.”
“It is going to be burdensome. It’s going to add a lot of cost and burden to U.S. exports,” Abigail Struxness, program manager of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition told Capital Press.
At the moment it remains unclear if the regulations will apply to refrigerated cargoes which usually travel at temperatures that would kill the mosquitoes.
Other questions remain as well. The Agriculture Transportation Coalition is working to answer a myriad of questions according to the coalition’s website, including:
-Can high volume cargo even fumigate at the scale they operate at?
-Which fumigants are acceptable? Methyl bromide? Phostoxin?
-Which fumigants can work with food-grade products?
-Is it better to fumigate in the US or upon arrival in China?
-Which certification parties are acceptable?
-How much time will it add to the supply chain?
Considering that China unseated Mexico in 2012 as the top importer of U.S. food, according to Mother Jones, and U.S. agricultural exports to China reached a value of $20 billion last year, the answers to these questions are of high economic importance.
Complicating the matter further is the fact that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) considers Zika to be a human health issue and not a phytosanitary concern, and since APHIS does not employ entomologists, it will not be in the position to oversee fumigation methods or issue guarantees, reports Capital Press.
“The people who could help us are saying mosquitoes aren’t under their jurisdiction,” said John Szczepanski, director of the U.S. Forage Export Council.
U.S. exporters state that they are willing to be compliant with the regulation, however, execution poses challenges.
“This will most certainly disrupt the U.S. exporters’ ability to deliver goods affordably and on time to foreign customers in China,” said the Agricultural Transportation Coalition.
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Lynda Kiernan