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Phytosanitary Certification
Why are Phytosanitary
Certificates necessary?
When you export any agricultural
product such as raw fruits, vegetables, seeds, whole
plants or any parts of the plants, you need a
Phytosanitary Certificate (PC) accompanying with
your commodity. A PC is required by importing
countries but issued by exporting countries. In the
United Sates, department of agriculture in each
state issues either a federal or state phytosanitary
certificate. Importing countries may require either
a state or federal PC.
The reason why importing
countries require a PC is because they don’t want
any harmful organism introduced into their countries
with importation of your commodity. The PC is a
document stating your commodity free of a list of
harmful organisms set by importing countries. When
shipment arrives in the entry port of an importing
country, the quarantine official will examine the PC
to see if your commodity meets the requirement. The
requirement varies from one commodity to another
commodity and from one country to another country.
So, when you plan to export your product to other
countries, make sure you get an updated requirement
from the importing country. Nevada State Department
can help to obtain such information through the
CERIS database, but the information is not
guaranteed to be the newest.
Besides the PC, importing
countries may also require import permits. The
import permit is issued to the importers by foreign
countries. It shows conditions that have to be met
before any importation can be made. If such a permit
is required, exporters are responsible to get a copy
from importers and send this copy with an
application for a PC to Nevada Department of
Agriculture (NDOA). NDOA officials will ensure that
all conditions set in the permit are met prior to
issuing a PC.
Please note, the PC for
exportation is not a requirement from USDA or NDOA.
It is a requirement from the importing country’s
government. Occasionally, importing companies may
have additional requirement for commercial purpose.
Although this additional requirement is strongly
discouraged by USDA, NDOA is willing to provide an
additional letter if the commodity meets the
requirement after inspection.
Who should apply for a PC?
Any exporter, grower, packer,
shipper, or other parties involved in the
transaction should apply for a PC before shipment.
When should I apply for a PC?
Depending on types of commodity,
phytosanitary inspection may be performed at the
shipping point or in the field. For processed
products, an inspection at the shipping point should
be enough to provide information for issuing the PC.
A call should be made several days before the
product is shipped. If you are going to export raw
plants and any parts of the plants including seeds,
you should notify NDOA as early as possible. This is
because most countries require a complete field
inspection. As a part of the agency function, NDOA
will arrange a field survey during growing seasons
for those targeted organisms. Please note, field
survey is a complicated process that may require
laboratory analysis for some organisms. The time for
completion of this process may vary from several
days to 2 weeks. To ensure prompt issue of a PC,
NDOA is managing to get prepared by sending an
application to all interest parties. Early return of
the application will allow us to order any reagents
or supplies needed for laboratory tests beforehand,
which in return will speed up the process.
How to contact NDOA?
Once you plan to export your
product to any foreign country, please call Nevada
Department of Agriculture at (775) 688-1180, or fax
back your application at (775) 688-1178 or mail to
Nevada Department of Agriculture, 350 Capitol Hill
Avenue, Reno, NV 89502. NDOA usually sends out
application forms to everyone at the end of each
year. If you have not received, please call the
number above.
What if I don’t ask for field
inspection before or during growing seasons?
Depending on the importing
country and your commodity, a PC may or may not be
issued. If the importing country requires field
inspection and you have harvested your commodity,
there is no way to issue a PC because no information
can be put in the PC. So be sure to notify NDOA
before or during growing seasons.
How much will it cost for the
field inspection?
There is no fee charged for
application of a PC, but there is a fee charged by
NDOA to cover some types of costs associated with
the field inspection. The fee may include cost on
mileage and/or possible laboratory expense if
applicable. For this reason, the charge may vary
according to the types of commodity and importing
country’s requirement. Please contact NDOA for
specific information.
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