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Document Historic, Arcliive Do not assume content reflects current scientific knowledge, policies, or practices. I UnitedStatesDepartmentofAgriculture L AGR/CLIBHARV AnimalandPlantHealthInspectionService ProgramAidNo. 1083 ^EB 29 A 2: QQ ^ Travelers' Tips-i':^sERiAi. On Bringing Food, Plant, andAnimal Products Into the United States FOR RECORDED TRAVELER INFORMATION CALL 1-866-SAFOUARD TheU.S.DepartmentofAgriculture (USDA)prohibitsdiscriminationinall itsprogramsandactivitiesonthebasisofrace,color,nationalorigin,sex, reUgion,age,disability,pohticalbehefs,sexualorientation,ormaritalor familystams. (Notallprohibitedbasesapplytoallprograms.) Persons withdisabilitieswhorequirealternativemeansforcommunicationof programinformation (Braille,largeprint,audiotape,etc.) shouldcontact USDA'sTARGETCenterat(202) 720-2600 (voiceandTDD). TofQeacomplaintofdiscrimination,writeUSDA,Director,OflficeofCivil Rights,Room326-W,WhittenBuilding, 1400IndependenceAvenue,SW, Washington,DC20250-9410orcall(202) 720-5964 (voiceandTDD). USDAisanequalopportunityproviderandemployer. SlightlyrevisedMay2001 ASpecialMessage forTravelers Pleasetakeafewminutestobecomefamiliarwith restrictionsonbringingagriculturalproductsintotheUnited States. ThisbookletHstsacceptableorenterableagricultural productsandtellsyouaboutotherproductsthatrequire permitsorareprohibited. TheU.S. DepartmentofAgriculture (USDA) placeslimits onitemsbroughttotheUnitedStatesfromforeigncountriesas wellasthosebroughttothemainlandfromHawaii, Puerto Rico, andtheU.S.VirginIslands. Prohibiteditemscanharbor foreignanimalandplantpestsanddiseasesthatcouldseriously damageAmerica'scrops,hvestock,pets, andenvironment. Becauseofthisthreat,youarerequiredto declareany meats,fruits,vegetables,plants, animals, andplantandanimal productsyouhavewithyou. Yourdeclarationmustcoverall itemscarriedinyourbaggageandhandluggageorinyour vehicle. OnePiece Can SpellDanger Travelersareoftensurprisedwhentoldthattheir"one Htdepieceoffruitormeat" cancauseseriousdamage. Infact, oneitemcarelesslydiscardedcanwreakhavoconAmerican crops. Forexample,it'squitelikelythatatravelercarriedin thewormyfruitthatbroughtMediterraneanfruitfliesto Californiain 1979- The3-yearfighttoeradicatethispestcost morethan $100million. SubsequentinfestationsinCalifomia andFloridahavecostevenmoretoeradicate. AsingleUnkofsausagecontaminatedwiththedreaded virusthatcausesfoot-and-mouthdiseasecoulddosimilar damagetothehvestockbusiness. Foot-and-mouthdiseaselast strucktheUnitedStatesin 1929- Economistssaythatan outbreaktodaywouldcostfarmersandconsumersbilhonsof dollarsinlostproduction,higherfoodprices, andlostexport markets. EvenwhenyoubeUevethattheitemyouarebuyingissafe, exercisecautionandcommonsense. Whenyouarethinking aboutbuyingagriculturalsouvenirs, remindyourselfoftheold saying, "letthebuyerbeware." DutyFreeshopsdonothave anyspecialauthorization, clearance, orcertificationwithUSDA allowingthemtosellprohibitedproducts. Evenifsignsand displayssay"USDAApproved,"beskeptical. Pleasestickto itemsonthelistsofapprovedproductsinthisbooklet, and alwaystellUSDAorCustomsServiceinspectorseverythingyou havethatisanagriculturalproduct. 3 Declarations PreventFines Thedeclarationyou'rerequiredtomakemaybeoral, written, orboth. Ifyou'retraveUngfromabroadonaplaneor ship,youwillbegivenaCustomsformonwhichto declare youragriculturalproducts. Youwillalsobeaskedtoindicate whetheryouhavevisitedafarmorranchoutsidetheUnited States. OfficersofthePlantProtectionandQuarantine (PPQ) programofUSDA'sAnimalandPlantHealthInspectionService (APHIS) inspectpassengerbaggageforagriculniralproducts. Atsomeports,inspectorsusedogsfromUSDA'sBeagleBrigade tosniffouthiddenitems. Atotherports, officialsuselow- energyx-raymachinesadaptedtorevealfruitsandmeats. Smugglersgetcaught. Inanaveragemonth, inspectors findmorethan 3,000violations. Atravelerwhofailstodeclare aprohibiteditemisfinedonthespot (upto $1,000), andthe itemisconfiscatedandsafelydestroyedinagrinderor incinerator. Fruits, Vegetables, andPlants Youmaybringinsomefruits,vegetables, andplants withoutadvancepermission, providedtheyaredeclared, inspected, andfoundfreeofpests. However,youmustgeta permitinadvancetobringincertainplantsandplantparts intendedforgrowing. Forinformationonpermits, contact USDA-APHIS-PPQ'spermitunitattheaddresshstedinthefirst paragraphofappendix 1. Tobringbackendangeredor threatenedplantspecies, insomecasesyouwillneedpermits orcertificatesfromthecountryoforiginaswellasfromthe U.S. DepartmentoftheInterior'sU.S. FishandWildhfeService (FWS). Pleaseseeappendix 1 forcontactinformation. 4 MeatandAnimalProducts Regulationsprohibityoufrombringinginfresh, dried, or cannedmeatsandmeatproductsfrommostforeigncountries. Ifanymeatisusedinpreparingaproduct,itisprohibited. Regulationsconcerningmeatandmeatproductschange frequendybasedondiseaseoutbreaksworldwide. Contactyour localAPHIS-PPQofficeformorecompleteinformation. Be preparedtostipulatetheexacttypeofmeatyouwouldHketo bringbackanditscountryoforigin. Huntingtrophies,game-animalcarcasses, andhidesare severelyrestricted. Ifyouintendtobringthemin, contact USDA-APHISVeterinaryServices'NationalCenterforImport andExport (NCIE) forappUcableinformationandpermit forms. Pleaseseeappendix 1 forcontactinformation. FWSregulatestheimportandexportofwildandendan- geredanimalsandplantsandtheirproducts. Moreinformation isavailableintheirfreepubHcations"FactsAboutFederal WildhfeLaws"and"BuyerBewareGuide." LiveAnimals andBirds LiveanimalsandbirdscanentertheUnitedStatessubject tocertification,permits,inspection,andquarantinerulesthat varywiththeanimalanditsorigin. Dogsthathavebeenin CentralandSouthAmericaposeaspecialhealthhazardifthey havewoundsmfestedwithscrewworms. Ifyourdoghasevena smallwound,besuretohaveittreatedbeforeyoutraveltothe UnitedStates. Petbirdsyoupurchasedabroadforyourpersonalusecan enter, subjecttorestrictionsbysomeStatedepartmentsof agriculture,ifquarantinedbyUSDAfor30days. Make quarantinearrangementsinadvancebecausefaciHtiesare limitedandavailableatonlycertainports. Forinformationand apermitapphcation, contactNCIE. NoFederalquarantmeisrequiredforpersonallyowned U.S.petbirdsreturningtotheUnitedStates. Bringalongavahd U.S.veterinaryhealthcertificatethatindividuallyidentifieseach birdbyreferringtoalegbandortattoo. Besuretokeepyour bfrdseparatedfromotherbirdswhileoutofcountry. No m Federalquarantineisrequiredforpetbirdsoriginating Canada. U.S.-originbirdsthathavebeenoutoftheUnitedStatesfor 60daysorlessrequireUSDAveterinaryinspectionattheport ofentry. Thereisafeeforthisservice. Ifthebirdshavebeen outofthecountryformorethan60days,therearedifferent 5 requirementsforentry. ContactNCIEwellinadvanceofyour returnformoreinformation. TheU.S. CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention (CDC) regulateimportationofcertainanimalspeciesandhavespecific regulationsregardingpets (includingcatsanddogs) and nonhumanprimates. CDCrequirethatpetdogsandcats appearhealthyuponvisualinspectionattheportofentry. Cats maybeimportedwithoutfurtherrestriction. Dogscoming fromacountrythatisnotfreeofrabiesmustbeaccompanied byproofthatrabiesvaccinationiscurrentandwasadminis- teredatleast30daysbeforearrivalintheUnitedStates. Youngpuppiesmaybeimportedwithoutproofofrabies vaccinationbutmustbeconfinedataplaceoftheowner's choiceuntiltheyare3monthsofageandthenvaccinated. Confinementmustthencontinuefor30days. Monkeysand othernonhumanprimatesmaynotbeimportedforuseaspets underanycircumstances;importationforscientificor exhibitionpurposesisstricdycontrolledthrougharegistration process. Turtleswithshellsthatarelessthan4incheslongmaynot beimportedforcommercialpurposes. Youmayimportas manyassixturtleswithshellsatleast4incheslong (ora combinationofturtlesandviableeggsnotexceedingsix) for yourpersonaluseaspets. ApermitissuedbyCDCmust accompanyfivebatsandcertainsnails. Animals (otherthanbirds) takenoutoftheUnitedStates aresubject,uponreturn,tothesamerequirementsasthose enteringforthefirsttime. Moredetailedinformationcanbe foundintheU.S. CustomsServicePubfication 509, "Petsand Wildlife." Forftirtherinformation, contactCDCattheaddress Ustedinappendix 1. 6 OtherBiological Materials Youmusthaveapermittobringinmostorganisms, cells andcultures,monoclonalantibodies,vaccines, andrelated substances,whetherofplantoranimalorigin. Thiscategory includesorganismsandproductsusedinthebiotechnology industry. Forinformationandapermitapplication, contact NCIEorPPQ'spermitunit. USDAdoesnotrequirepermitsfordeadmsects,including butterflies. Biologicalspecimensofplantpests,inpreservatives ordried,maybeimportedwithoutrestrictionsbutaresubject toinspectiononarrivalintheUnitedStatestoconJ&rmthe natureofthematerialandmakesureitisfreeofhitchhiking plantpestsordiseases. Pleaseremembertodeclarethese itemsandpresentthemforinspection. Collectorsshouldcheck inadvancewithFWStodeterminetheproceduresforspeci- mensofthreatenedandendangeredspecies. Soil, Sand, Minerals, andShells Soilbomeorganismsthreatenbothplantsandanimals. If youvisitedafarmorranchoverseas, agriculturalinspectors mayhavetodisinfectyourshoesorclothes. Vehiclesmustalso becleanedofsoil. Youmaynotbringinanysoilorearththatisnotaccompa- m niedbyapermit. Thepermitisissued advancebyPPQ's permitunit. Puresand,hkeasmallcontainerofdecorative beachsand,isallowed. Rocks,minerals, andshellsare allowed, butallsandandsoilmustbecleanedoffthem. Productsgrowninsoil (Mkeshamrocksandtruffles) mustbe freeofsoil. I 7 WhatYou Can BringBack Whenyouplanyourtripabroad, checkthelistof approvedproducts. Keepinmindthatthishstisnotall inclusive. Also,whetherornotanitemyouarebringinginto thiscountryappearsonthehstofapprovedproducts,youare stillresponsiblefordeclaringtoaFederalinspectionofficer everyagriculturalproductinyourpossession. NotethatifyouleavetheUnitedStateswithanyU.S. agriculturalproducts,youmaynotbeallowedto bringthem backinwhenyoureUimtothecountry. CheckwithaU.S. borderofficialbeforetakingsuchgoodsacrosstheborder. Ifyou'reunsureofwhat'sallowed, callforhelp. Lookin yourphonebookforthenearestofficeofUSDA,APHIS, PPQ; or callPPQ'scentralofficeat (301) 734-8645. Ifyourquestion isspecffictoanimalsoranimalproducts, contactNCIE. U.S. consulatesabroadmayalsobeabletoanswermanyofyour questions. Inaddition,APHIS' Internetsiteat www.aphis.usda.govprovidesmformationonthisandother relatedtopics. OtherFederalagencieshaveregulationspertainingto itemsthatareallowedorprohibitedentryintotheUnitedStates aswell. TheU.S. CustomsServicepubhshesthebrochure "KnowBeforeYouGo (CustomsHintsforReturningResi- dents)," andtheU.S. StateDepartmentpubhshesthebrochure 'TourTripAbroad"withgeneralinformationfortravelers. Pleaseseeappendix 1 forcontactinformation. 8