The International Agricultural Surveillance System (Vigiagro) of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (Mapa) recently intercepted 576 kilos of peaches contaminated with a quarantine pest at Guarulhos airport, São Paulo. Originating from the United States, the shipment was found to contain anarsia lineatella, a pest not present in Brazil, during routine inspections by federal agricultural tax auditors. The presence of this pest, listed in SDA Ordinance No. 617/2022, necessitates the incineration of the affected cargo.
Despite arriving with a phytosanitary certificate, further testing by Vigiagro auditors revealed the pest. Sandra Kunieda, head of Vigiagro in Guarulhos, emphasized the importance of rigorous inspection processes for imported fruit cargoes to ensure they are pest-free. The discovery of the live larva, a borer affecting stone fruit orchards, underscores the potential risk to Brazilian agriculture. The contaminated peaches are slated for fumigation before incineration, a measure to prevent the pest's introduction into Brazil. This incident highlights the ongoing efforts of Vigiagro to safeguard national agricultural interests through diligent surveillance at points of entry.
Source: revistacultivar.com