Lesson 3: SPS Agreement Principles
Topic 5: Regionalization
In this lesson, you will learn how SPS measures can be adapted to address regional conditions, and how designation of pest- and disease-free areas can be used to facilitate trade.
Objective:
- Describe how SPS measures can be adapted to specific areas to reduce the impact on trade
- Explain the difference between pest/disease free areas and areas of low pest/disease prevalence
Threats to food safety and animal and plant health are rarely confined by political boundaries. In many cases it makes sense to consider a geographical area that is either larger or smaller than an individual country when trying to determine pest presence or absence. Regional designations of pest presence or absence can facilitate trade while maintaining low risk.
The topic of Article 6 is regionalization, or adaptation to regional conditions, and introduces the concept of pest-or disease-free areas and areas of low pest or disease prevalence. From the Agreement:
- Members shall ensure that their sanitary or phytosanitary measures are adapted to the sanitary or phytosanitary characteristics of the area—whether all of a country, part of a country, or all or parts of several countries—from which the product originated and to which the product is destined. In assessing the sanitary or phytosanitary characteristics of a region, Members shall take into account, inter alia, the level of prevalence of specific diseases or pests, the existence of eradication or control programs, and appropriate criteria or guidelines which may be developed by the relevant international organizations.
- Members shall, in particular, recognize the concepts of pest or disease-free areas and areas of low pest or disease prevalence. Determination of such areas shall be based on factors such as geography, ecosystems, epidemiological surveillance, and the effectiveness of sanitary or phytosanitary controls.
- Exporting Members claiming that areas within their territories are pest- or disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease prevalence shall provide the necessary evidence in order to objectively demonstrate to the importing Member that such areas are, and are likely to remain, pest- or disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease prevalence, respectively. For this purpose, reasonable access shall be given, upon request, to the importing Member for inspection, testing and other relevant procedures.
Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures.
In addition to Article 6 above, the WTO SPS Committee has adopted non-binding “Guidelines to Further the Practical Implementation of Article 6 of the SPS Agreement” (May, 2008) in order to facilitate the recognition of pest- and disease-free areas or areas of low pest or disease prevalence. These guidelines are intended to provide assistance to WTO Members in the practical implementation of Article 6 by improving transparency, the exchange of information, predictability, confidence, and credibility between importing and exporting Members. These guidelines provide information on the recognition of regionalization and the administrative steps an exporting or importing country must take.
Pest Free Area, Place of Production, or Production Site?
The IPPC developed several international standards that outline the concept of regionalization. Specifically, International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures, or ISPMs, provide guidelines that cover pest free areas, pest free place of production, and pest free production sites.
A pest free area (ISPM 5) is defined as, “An area in which a specific pest does not occur as demonstrated by scientific evidence and in which, where appropriate, this condition is being officially maintained.”
Official maintenance, or control, is the active enforcement of mandatory phytosanitary regulations and the application of mandatory phytosanitary procedures. The objective of official control is eradication or containment of quarantine pests or the management of regulated non-quarantine pests. It is important to remember that actions taken to suppress pest populations do not constitute official control. Pest suppression activities alone cannot be used to maintain pest free status. Additional measures such as trapping and monitoring must show that the pest is absent from the area. Pest free areas are generally large geographical areas. Examples may include an entire country, an un-infested part of a country with limited infested area, or an un-infested part of a country within a generally infested area.
A pest free place of production (ISPM 5) is one “in which a specific pest does not occur as demonstrated by scientific evidence and in which, where appropriate, this condition is being officially maintained for a defined period”.
A pest free place of production is smaller in scale than a pest free area. Usually a pest free place of production includes several or many individual production sites, all of which have a pest free status by inclusion. For example, a group of nearby orchards that effectively control a quarantine pest could be a pest free place of production.
A pest free production site (ISPM 5, ISPM 10) is a “defined portion of a place of production in which a specific pest does not occur as demonstrated by scientific evidence and in which, where appropriate, this condition is being officially maintained for a defined period and that is managed as a separate unit in the same way as a pest free place of production”.
For example, a greenhouse that excludes pests could be a pest free production site. Guidance to establish and maintain status as either a pest free place of production or a pest free production site is provided in ISPM 10 (1999).
Which Management Option is Appropriate?
The designations of pest or disease-free areas are used to promote phytosanitary security and facilitate trade. Each of the 3 management options can provide adequate security, however, there are a number of factors to consider when selecting the appropriate designation to implement.
The choice of a pest free place of production or pest free area as a management option depends primarily on the distribution and biology of the pest of concern in the exporting country. Both systems can offer adequate phytosanitary security. The main security of the pest free area lies in the common application of measures to an area covering many places of production. The main security of the pest free place of production arises from the fact that management procedures, surveys, and inspections are applied intensively and tailored to the specific place of production. However, phytosanitary security provided by a pest free place of production does not apply to activities such as packing or transport that occurs outside of a pest free place of production. Providing phytosanitary security for these activities may be difficult or costly.
Pest Free Area
- A pest free area is much larger than a pest free place of production.
- A pest free area can include pest free places of production.
- A pest free area may extend to a whole country or to parts of several countries.
- A pest free area may be isolated by a natural barrier or by a large buffer zone.
- A pest free area is generally maintained over many years without interruption.
- A pest free area is managed as a whole, by the NPPO of the exporting country.
- A pest free area’s status is called into question if a pest is found.
Pest Free Place of Production
- A pest free place of production may be in an area where the pest concerned is prevalent but where the pest is kept separate by creating a buffer zone in the immediate surroundings.
- A pest free place of production may be maintained for only one or a few growing seasons.
- A pest free place of production is managed individually by the producer under the supervision and responsibility of the NPPO.
- A pest free place of production loses its status if a pest is found, but other places of production operating in the area and following the same system are not directly affected.
Regionalization Promotes Trade
Regionalization allows countries, particularly those that are large or that have a wide variety of climatic zones, to maintain trade if pests or diseases do not occur throughout the entire country. In this way, an exporting country can set aside resources to define the distribution of pests and diseases. This information can be shared with trading partners to address concerns about risk. Whether the scale is large (States, zones) or relatively small (areas of production, farms), a country’s pest free status may help it avoid or reduce unnecessary barriers to trade. The opportunity to maintain market access when pests or diseases are not widespread lowers the negative impacts on trade.
The following video will help illustrate the concept of Regionalization.
In this topic, you learned how SPS measures could be adapted to address regional conditions. In particular, you learned that designations of pest or disease-free areas could be used to facilitate trade.
To continue, select Topic 6 from the Topics menu above or click here.