TEXAS: US Customs and Border Protection Office of Field Operation agriculture specialists recently completed an enforcement operation targeting prohibited agriculture items. More than 1,000 pieces of prohibited food were seized and over 100 pests were discovered during the blitz. Sample of items seized during “Holiday Rush” operation
“Protecting our nation’s food supply is an important part of the CBP mission,” said CBP El Paso Port Director Beverly Good. “CBP agriculture specialists are highly trained and have the knowledge to recognize the presence of pests or disease on agricultural commodities as well as to identify prohibited products.”
Operation “Holiday Rush” ran for the first 11 days of January. The operation’s focus was on vehicle and bus passengers returning to the U.S. after extensive visits in Mexico for the holiday season. It is common for these travelers to return to the U.S. with large amounts of food and agriculture items.Fruit fly larvae
During the operation 2,490 vehicles and 15,806 bus passengers were inspected which resulted in 18 civil penalties issued for failure to declare prohibited agriculture items, totaling $3,650 in fines. The operation uncovered 1,510 prohibited agriculture items. Those prohibited items were seized and destroyed after examination for any pests or disease. CBP agriculture specialists also recorded 136 pest interceptions. The pest interceptions were turned over to USDA for final identification. Of the 136 pests intercepted, 82 were plant pathogens and 54 were insects.
