US suspends Dominican mango imports

The US Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has temporarily suspended Dominican mango imports into the United States.

Over the weekend, local press outlets reported that APHIS has made the decision after the Dominican Republic failed to meet phytosanitary requirements made by the US agency back in 2023.

According to the Dominican newspaper Hoy, the recommendations sought to strengthen the management of the Caribbean Fruit Fly (Anastrepha Obliqua) and set a maximum FTD (flies per trap per day) index of 0.5, which allegedly has been constantly surpassed by Dominican mango producers, as reported by local news outlet El Nacional.

Government takes action to resume Dominican mango exports

The Dominican Republic's Ministry of Agriculture confirmed the suspension, but clarified that the situation is not as dire as it seems, considering the country already exported $35 million earlier this year, and expects to surpass $50 million by year's end. 

“We must emphasize that, at the moment these actions were announced, between 85 percent and 90 percent of yellow-skinned mangos were already exported into the United States, as the late-summer harvest began the first week of February, so only around 10 percent remains,” explained Emidio Gómez, Director of Health and Food Safety at the Dominican Ministry of Agriculture. 

Along with the confirmation, the government said it'll adopt a set of phytosanitary protocols to ensure the Dominican mango industry's compliance with APHIS recommendations and protect the local export industry, which they say is one of the most profitable for local producers. 

In a press release, the Ministry of Agriculture named Jeurys Arias as the coordinator of the Caribbean Fruit Fly monitoring program, and announced a new commission in charge of checking all traps targeting the psillid within Domincan mango fields. The new minister of Agriculture, Francisco Oliverio Espaillat, added that the effort contemplates the redrawing of the fruit fly map in the country, as well as the implementation of a corrective plan of action.   

Meanwhile, the secretary of state said that Dominican mango exports to Europe, which began in May, continue successfully with shipments of green- and red-skinned fruit, as the country has not been hit with by the fruit fly Ceratitis capitata.

*All images are referential via Shutterstock. 

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