Peru will enable more citrus regions to export to the US

According to Sergio del Castillo Valderrama, general manager of ProCitrus, Peru seeks to enable more…

According to Sergio del Castillo Valderrama, general manager of ProCitrus, Peru seeks to enable more productive regions of citrus to export to the U.S..

He stated that the country's current protocol with the U.S. only allows the export of citrus from the areas of Ica, Lima, Lambayeque, Piura and Junín. However, he said, SENASA has asked its U.S. counterpart, APHIS, to extend the permission to all regions in Peru.

"Usually, when a country is about to begin exporting to the U.S., they conduct a risk analysis, which indicates where the crops are being cultivated," he said. In this regard, he clarified that the only citrus being grown when the analysis was performed were in the five areas mentioned before. Today, however, there are citrus crops in La Libertad, Ancash and Arequipa, among other regions. "That's why we're requesting that these productive areas be permitted to export," he said.

Sergio del Castillo said that the main reason the U.S. does not allow all Peruvian regions to export is due to the presence of the fruit fly.