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Detection and confirmation of adult ceratitis capiata (Mediterranean Fruit Fly or Medfly) in the municipality of Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico has led to the implementation of emergency response measures to protect U.S. agricultural resources from this destructive pest.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (USDA/APHIS) have implemented emergency interim measures at all land border ports in California, Arizona, New Mexico and in El Paso, Texas.

The Medfly, one of the most destructive pests known to man, causes damage by laying its eggs just beneath the skin of ripening fruit. Commodities that can be attacked by the Medfly includes more than 250 different types, including fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Because this insect pest is so potentially injurious to crops, year-round trapping is maintained as an early warning system in Florida, Texas, Arizona, and California, and in Northern Mexico and Baja. The instant a detection is made, eradication and regulatory restrictions are set in place to prevent the movement of the pest to other areas.

Adding to the problem is that the pest is not detectable to the naked eye. Fruit must be cut to determine whether larvae are present.

The following emergency interim measures are now in effect until further notice:

Commercial Shipments from Mexico entering land border ports in California, Arizona, New Mexico and including El Paso, Texas:
All shipments of agricultural commodities on the Medfly host list will require a (USDA) phytosanitary certificate as well as a special declaration indicating that the cargo originated outside the Baja area and was not packed in or transited through that area.

Pedestrians and vehicles from Mexico at the following ports of entry: Otay Mesa, San Ysidro, and Tecate.
All fruit fly host materials (on the Medfly host list) entering from Mexico will be confiscated.
CBP Agriculture Specialists will conduct fruit cuttings of seized quarantine fruit fly host material and note source and origin of any pest interceptions.

In addition, CBP Border Patrol agents at locations within the San Diego and El Centro sectors in California have instituted a unique program to widen the scope of inspections to those areas between the ports of entry. During the duration of the emergency response efforts, Border Patrol Officers in those areas will confiscate any produce found on individuals who are detained at checkpoints and other locations. Those materials will be placed in special bins and transported several times a week to the nearest port of entry for examination by CBP Agriculture Specialists.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control, and protection of our Nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.