Systems Approaches as Phytosanitary Measures: Techniques and Case Studies

Abstract

The development of export strategies for horticultural products considered to be hosts of quarantine pests follows a logical series of steps. The foundation for the process is the completion of a commodity plant pest risk assessment that satisfies the needs of the national plant protection organization of the importing country. After identifying the significant pests, a set of proposed mitigation measures is designed. Regulatory officials are increasingly using systems approaches to supplement or substitute for direct postharvest treatments in developing export strategies. The components of systems approaches can be divided into a series of five categories of measures: field and production measures, preharvest measures, postharvest measures, inspection and certification measures, and shipping and distribution measures. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), working with the national plant protection organizations of other countries, has used the systems approach concept to develop quarantine strategies for both the domestic movement and the importation of fruit fly host commodities. The Mexican fruit fly Anastrepha ludens (Loew) programme in the Texas citrus production area of the lower Rio Grande River Valley is an example of a domestic systems approach. USDA allows the importation of papayas from Central America when produced in accordance with a systems approach that primarily targets the Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann). Systems approaches are groups of integrated pest risk management measures designed to provide importing countries with adequate phytosanitary security while facilitating trade in situations where direct postharvest commodity treatment is undesirable, not feasible or non-existent, or imported products are marginal hosts of the quarantine pest produced in a low-pest prevalence area.