Notice2026-04922
Notice of Availability of a Pest Risk Analysis for the Importation of Fresh Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.)) Roots From the Republic of Korea Into the United States
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
March 13, 2026
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentAnimal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Abstract
We are advising the public that we have prepared a pest risk analysis that evaluates the risks associated with importation of fresh sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.)) roots from the Republic of Korea into the United States for consumption. Currently, fresh sweet potato roots are authorized into Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. Based on the analysis, we have determined that the application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be sufficient to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating plant pests or noxious weeds via the importation of fresh sweet potato roots from the Republic of Korea into the rest of the United States. We are making the pest risk analysis available to the public for review and comment.
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 49 (Friday, March 13, 2026)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 49 (Friday, March 13, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12339-12340]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-04922]
========================================================================
Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules
or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings
and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings,
delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency
statements of organization and functions are examples of documents
appearing in this section.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 91, No. 49 / Friday, March 13, 2026 /
Notices
[[Page 12339]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
[Docket No. APHIS-2025-0013]
Notice of Availability of a Pest Risk Analysis for the
Importation of Fresh Sweet Potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.)) Roots From the
Republic of Korea Into the United States
AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of availability.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: We are advising the public that we have prepared a pest risk
analysis that evaluates the risks associated with importation of fresh
sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.)) roots from the Republic of Korea
into the United States for consumption. Currently, fresh sweet potato
roots are authorized into Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern
Mariana Islands. Based on the analysis, we have determined that the
application of one or more designated phytosanitary measures will be
sufficient to mitigate the risks of introducing or disseminating plant
pests or noxious weeds via the importation of fresh sweet potato roots
from the Republic of Korea into the rest of the United States. We are
making the pest risk analysis available to the public for review and
comment.
DATES: We will consider all comments that we receive on or before May
12, 2026.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments by either of the following methods:
<bullet> FederaleRulemaking Portal: Go to <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>.
Enter APHIS-2025-0013 in the Search field. Select the Documents tab,
then select the Comment button in the list of documents.
<bullet> Postal Mail/Commercial Delivery: Send your comment to
Docket No. APHIS-2025-0013, Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD,
APHIS, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., #AP760, Beltsville, MD 20705.
Supporting documents and any comments we receive on this docket may
be viewed at <a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a> or in our reading room, which is
located in Room 1620 of the USDA South Building, 14th Street and
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC. Normal reading room hours are 8
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except holidays. To be sure
someone is there to help you, please call (202) 799-7039 before coming.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Gina Stiltner, Senior Regulatory
Policy Specialist, Regulatory Coordination and Compliance, PPQ, APHIS,
1400 Independence SW, Washington, DC 20250; (518) 760-2468.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Under the regulations in ``Subpart L--Fruits and Vegetables'' (7
CFR 319.56-1 through 319.56-12, referred to below as the regulations),
the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) prohibits or
restricts the importation of fruits and vegetables into the United
States from certain parts of the world to prevent plant pests from
being introduced into or disseminated within the United States.
Section 319.56-4 contains a performance-based process for approving
the importation of fruits and vegetables that, based on the findings of
a pest risk analysis, can be safely imported subject to one or more of
the five designated phytosanitary measures listed in paragraph (b) of
that section. Paragraph (c) of that section provides that the name and
origin of all fruits and vegetables authorized importation into the
United States, as well as the requirements for their importation, be
listed on the internet in APHIS' Agricultural Commodity Import
Requirements database, or ACIR (<a href="https://acir.aphis.usda.gov/s/">https://acir.aphis.usda.gov/s/</a>).
Currently, fresh sweet potato roots from the Republic of Korea are
listed in ACIR as authorized importation into Guam and Commonwealth of
the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).
APHIS received a request from the national plant protection
organization of the Republic of Korea to allow the importation of fresh
sweet potato roots from the Republic of Korea into the rest of the
United States.\1\ As part of our evaluation of the Republic of Korea's
request, we have prepared a pest risk assessment to identify the pests
of quarantine significance that could follow the pathway of the
importation of fresh sweet potato roots into the United States from the
Republic of Korea. Based on the pest risk assessment, a risk management
document (RMD) was prepared to identify phytosanitary measures that
could be applied to the fresh sweet potato roots to mitigate the pest
risk.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ The United States includes all states, the District of
Columbia, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, the U.S.
Virgin Islands, and any other territory or possession of the United
States. For this notice, ``rest of the United States'' does not
include Guam or Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Therefore, in accordance with Sec. 319.56-4(c), we are announcing
the availability of our pest risk assessment and RMD for public review
and comment. Those documents, as well as a description of the economic
considerations associated with the importation of fresh sweet potato
roots from the Republic of Korea, may be viewed on the <a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a>
website or in our reading room (see ADDRESSES above for a link to
<a href="http://Regulations.gov">Regulations.gov</a> and information on the location and hours of the
reading room). You may request paper copies of the pest risk assessment
and RMD by calling or writing to the person listed under FOR FURTHER
INFORMATION CONTACT. Please refer to the subject of the analysis you
wish to review when requesting copies.
After reviewing any comments we receive, we will announce our
decision regarding the import status of fresh sweet potato roots from
the Republic of Korea in a subsequent notice. If the overall
conclusions of our analysis and the Administrator's determination of
risk remain unchanged following our consideration of the comments, then
we will authorize \2\ the importation of fresh sweet potato roots from
the Republic of Korea into the rest of the United States subject to the
requirements specified in the RMD.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\2\ This notice will not impact the current import authorization
to Guam and Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
(Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1633, 7701-7772, and 7781-7786; 21 U.S.C. 136
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
and 136a; 7 CFR 2.22, 2.80, and 371.3.)
[[Page 12340]]
Done in Washington, DC, this 4th day of March 2026.
Kelly Moore,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2026-04922 Filed 3-12-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-34-P
</pre></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on March 13, 2026.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.