The plant health agency of the US department of agriculture has sent citrus inspectors to Spain accompanied by officials from the state of Florida. They are investigating cold treatment protocols for export clementines after the discovery of Mediterranean fruit fly larvae in fruit for sale in US retail outlets in three states.
The Spanish authorities are said to be confident that exports will resume once inspectors have seen that protocols are being scrupulously enforced.
Meanwhile, the ban remains in 17 southern citrus producing and buffer states in the US and Puerto Rico. The USDA is also destroying all Spanish clems already in the US.
Med fruit fly may be more prevalent in Spain his season because of warm summer temperatures.
Exports of clems to the US are a growing business for Spanish senders who have been able to take advantage of an increasing market for easy-peelers on the other side of the Atlantic.
