The European Union still has doubts over the presence of the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa in plants of the Phoenix variety and has rejected the request to allow their re-entry from Costa Rica.
In a meeting in which producers and exporters of ornamentals did not participate, the State Phytosanitary Service (SFE) put forward the"...
Costa Rica is not allowing the entry of potatoes from the U.S. and customs in Miami have increased controls on ornamental plants coming from Costa Rica.
It has been assumed that the increased controls on ornamental plants occurred after the State Phytosanitary Service (SFE) of Costa Rica suspended the issuance of phytosanitary requirement forms for importing U.S. potatoes.
For a year Costa Rica has had free rein to export to the U.S. ornamental plants measuring over 46 inches, a benefit that producers have failed to take advantage of.
"We lack the capacity to meet quotas. There is no support from banks for investment plans and also the Foreign Trade Promoter is ... inefficient and is not channelling business, nor does it know about the market," said Carlos Quesada, manager of Grupo Siempre Verde.
The U.S. government has lifted the restriction on imports from Costa Rica of dracaenas with foliage larger than 18 inches.
From a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Trade;
Costa Rica is the only country that can export ornamental plants larger than 18 inches to the United States.
San Jose, June 26, 2012. Today the Federal Register of the United States issued an amendment to its phytosanitary regulations, which allows the importation of ornamental plants of the species of Dracaena marginata larger than 18 inches (46 centimeters) from Costa Rica, giving a competitive advantage to national exporters.
Costa Rican exporters sending ornamental plants of the species Dracena spp to the U.S.A must be certified.
In addition to the certification issued by the State Phytosanitary Service (SFE), the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAG) and the United States Department of Agriculture, producers must also enroll in the Healthy Propagative Material Program.
Costa Rica and the U.S. will sign a work plan document to enable the export of large-sized ornamental plants.
It includes topics such as good plant health practices, production locations, harvesting procedures, packaging plants, and phytosanitary certifications for exporting, among others.
“Costa Rica sells $165 million a year in ornamental plants.
Costa Rica will implement a program to export ornamental plants larger than 45 centimeters to the U.S.
The plan, developed by the Phytosanitary Service (SFE), will be implemented in June and July and seeks to remove an existing restriction to export plants larger than 45 centimeters to the United States.
From Elfinancierocr.com: “This plan includes a set of phytosanitary best practices, harvesting procedures, packing plants, inspection procedures, phytosanitary certifications for exporting and corrective measures”.
The United States will allow entry of Costa Rican ornamental plants with stems over 18 inches and up to 54 inches high.
This potential market opening occurred as a result of the "Clean Stock Program” for the export of Dracaena to the Unites States, which culminated in April 2009. Costa Rica has yet to perform additional phytosanitary studies so that the United States will allow the importation of plants older than two years, or higher than 18 inches.