USAID/ USDA Program for Trade Capacity Building on Sanitary & Phytosanitary Issues under CAFTA-DR

1. USAID/USDA Program for Trade Capacity Building on Sanitary & Phytosanitary Issues under CAFTA-DR Geneva, October 6, 2008 Daniel Orellana Regional Coordinator for SPS & TCB

2. Establishing Priorities • Integrated SPS regulatory information systems • Upgrade laboratory infrastructure and analytical methods capability • Strengthen national WTO/SPS enquiry points • Develop animal health, inspection and sanitary standards for animal products • Risk Assessment methodologies and development of risk mitigation methods • Traceability • Coordination and participation in international standard–setting organizations

3. Priorities within the Priorities • Each Country provided a list of their priorities within the 7 negotiated priorities. • These were then reviewed with all U.S. Regulatory Agencies. (FSIS, FDA, APHIS, EPA) • This to establish which needs could provide market access the fastest.

4. Guatemala • Laboratories • Training on proper technique for animal, plant and marine health. • Proper methodology for sampling gathering and handling. • Pesticide and herbicide residues. • Determination of aflatoxins • Techniques on polymer reactions. • Identifying viral inmunoflourescencia. • Elisa techniques for plant health matrixes. • Traceability • Training for animal products and live animals. • Training for processed foods and by-products. • Risk Assessment Methodologies • Training in disease risk assessment and methodology. • Risk assessment of foods. • Animal Health, Inspection and Sanitary Standards • Inspection techniques • Training in surveillance of animal disease and plant health. • Designing contingency plans against the introduction of new pests or exotic animal disease. • Proper control campaigns for pest and animal disease. • Coordination and Participation of International Standard Setting Organisms • Need for financial support in order to send participants. • Integrated SPS Regulatory Information System • Guatemala has a mechanism to obtain all the information electronically, but needs setting up a server system that will provide access to users. • National WTO/SPS Enquiry Points • How to prepare a notification (regular and emergency). • What to notify? • When has a notification been accepted? • How to handle the documentation of the notification. • Reception of notifications from other countries. • How to formulate observations and comments. • Function of the Enquiry Points.

5. El Salvador • Animal Health • Swine production, disease and pathology • Avian pathology • Pasteurization methods • Administration of industrial poultry waste • Equivalence of Systems • Laboratories • Diagnose if swine viral diseases • Classic Swine Fever • African Swine Fever (AUJESKY) • Reproductive Respiratory Syndrome • Avian viral diseases • AI • Exotic New Castle • Laryngotraquetis • Low Pasteur Avian Syndrome • Anemia • Bronquitis • Microbiological analysis and residuals on dairy and dairy products. • Animal Epidemiology and Risk Analysis • Integrated SPS regulatory information systems • Strengthen national WTO/SPS enquiry points • Coordination and participation in international organisms

6. Honduras • Training on prevention of exotic animal diseases such as BSE, Foot & Mouth and AI. • Training on risk analysis for animal diseases including detection and eradication. • Training to improve animal health surveillance and the appropriate level of inspection to achieve equivalence. This would include the training the inspectors. • Dairy Training that includes pasteurization and training inspectors on proper inspection techniques. • Training on Risk Analysis for processed foods to establish a food safety system. • HACCP Training for meat and poultry products to improve inspectors’ ability to carry out their functions. • Training on ISO certification for the national laboratory on veterinary testing. • Train on modern techniques for pathogen detection in food products at the national laboratories and improve capabilities to meet USDA and AOAC standards. • Training on Phytosanitary inspection of plant products. Should include proper methodology for inspection, sampling, regulations, quarantine, pest management in the field and pest diagnostics. • Training on proper handling of pesticides as part of a good agricultural practices program. This training should include toxicology on humans and impact on the environment, as well as proper administration of pesticide sales. • Pest Risk Analysis training.

7. Nicaragua • Dairy Training that includes all FDA regulations on labeling, pasteurization, and HACCP. This course should include both the public sector and private sector • FDA to provide assessment of various dairy plants, including a review of what shape the plant is to pass an audit • Equivalence Training. Provide equivalence training to MAGFOR and Health experts to write up an equivalence law for Nicaragua, as well continue the process of verifying the U.S. system • HACCP training all 4 stages, for processed products that contain at least 3% meat product. Training for both public and private sector • HACCP training for poultry industry, including all 4 stages to achieve equivalence parallel to solving avian disease issues with APHIS. Stages 1 and 2 open to both public and private. Stages 3 and 4 just public • SPS inquiry points. Have an expert train MAGFOR on the process of proper notification to the WTO/SPS committee, as well as explain commitments and responsibilities of Nicaragua under the SPS agreement, and an overview of how said committee works • GMO Training. Risk analysis and inspection capabilities. Rapid testing kits • Provide training on Pest Risk Analysis (PRA’S) at the medium term • Cochran program for any courses that are related to food safety that USDA felt was of high value to MAGFOR • The situation with peanut exports was reviewed, but at this time there is need to do some research to establish the type of training needed.

8. Costa Rica • Strengthen the Clean Stock Program for Dracaena. • Train MAG Inspectors. This should be accomplished by bringing a USDA expert on inspections to Costa Rica (for 2 weeks during first trimester of 2006) • Follow up training at port of entry in the U.S. with product sent under CPS, (2 MAG inspectors for 5 days during the 4 trimester 2006) • Strengthen the Greenhouse Tomatoes and Peppers Program • Train personnel in Costa Rica on mitigating measures to be applied, (second trimester 2006) • Risk Analysis on canned foods, (both animal and plant) • Verification of Good Manufacturing Practices in general, inspection and verification and control of processed foods • Training for the Information Centers on SPS & Technical Barriers to Trade.

9. Dominican Republic • WTO Inquiry Points training • Administration of TRQ’s and Safeguards • Good Sanitary Practices for Dairy • Equivalence, Pre-inspection, and Inspector training • Poultry Surveillance Systems • Laboratory Assessment • Laboratory Training • Strengthen National Surveillance System • Meat Inspection and HACCP Training • Post Harvest Training • Heat Treatment for processed pork products • Food Safety Standards for US admissibility • Review of DR laws for meat inspection • Risk Assessment Training for Processed Foods • Review of US laws for meat slaughterhouses • Swine Surveillance Systems • FDA Labeling Laws • Phyto-Information System • Bovine Brucellosis and Tuberculosis Eradication

10. Program Execution • In 2004, USAID and USDA signed an agreement to help the CAFTA-DR countries overcome many SPS problems they had to access the US market • The program started operating in 2005 • USAID has contributed over $4.4 million to this program • USAID has also provided an additional $2.1 million to extend the program until September 30, 2010 • USDA has provided over $3 million in funding SPS capacity building for the CAFTA-DR countries since 2005 To date over 3000 persons have been trained

11. Examples of the Program • Dairy • Meat • Peppers

12. Dairy • Courses on Good Dairy Sanitation at the Farm (Good Milking Practices, Animal Health, Transportation, and Cleaning) • Courses on Good Dairy Practices (HACCP for Dairy, Good Manufacturing Practices, Pasteurization, and Equipment)

13. Dairy Results • Nicaragua has gone from 3 plants exporting in 2005 to 16 in 2008 • Honduras has gone from 2 plants exporting in 2005 to 8 in 2008 • El Salvador had no plants exporting in 2005 and now has 4 approved in 2008. • Total increase in Cheese exports from CA since 2005 is $6.7 million of new sales.

14. Meat • Food Safety • Equivalence Courses • HACCP • Meat Inspection • Line Inspection Techniques • Good Manufacturing practices • Pre-Audits • Laboratory Testing and Sampling • US Regulations • Meat Cuts Training • Labeling • Animal Health • Tuberculosis • Brucellosis • Animal Health Surveillance • Poultry Surveillance • Classic Swine Fever Diagnostics & Surveillance • Laboratory Diagnostics on Animal Diseases

15. Meat Results • Nicaragua has five beef plants exporting to the U.S. as well as Asia • Honduras has two beef plants exporting to the U.S. and one poultry plant exporting to Asia • Guatemala will start exporting to the U.S. in early 2009 • Total new meat exports to the U.S. since 2005 is $58 million

16. Peppers • Training of Pest Risk Assessment • Plant Pest Diagnostic Training • Mitigating Measures Training • Container Inspection Training • Port Visit • Pesticide Residue Levels and Testing

17. Peppers Results • In 2005 total exports were only $126,000 • Since mid 2006 all of Central American Countries have exported $18 million of peppers to the United States

18. Thank you Daniel Orellana Regional Coordinator for SPS & TCB Tel: (502) 2422-4213 Fax: (502) 2422-4589 licorellana@yahoo.com Daniel.Orellana@usda.gov