LaredoBuzz.Com

Courtesy Richard Pauza,

 LAREDO — As the U.S.-Mexico border community prepares for the upcoming All Souls Day (Día de Los Muertos) holiday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are advising the traveling public that certain agricultural items that are used in holiday decorations are prohibited from entry to the U.S. and can carry the citrus greening disease, which if allowed to establish itself further can be devastating to America’s citrus industry.

 Many border community families celebrate Día de los Muertos by constructing altares (altars) to commemorate the lives of loved ones or famous persons that have passed on.  A common type of ornamental greenery known as muraya or orange jasmine is sometimes used in the construction of altares. Muraya is a host plant for the Asian Citrus Psyllid, Diaphorina citri Kuwayama, an insect that can carry citrus greening disease, and it is therefore prohibited from entry into the U.S.

Citrus greening, also known as Huang Long Bing, is a disease caused by a bacterium that can infect most citrus varieties and some ornamental plants (such as orange jasmine) and was first detected in the U.S. in 2005 in Miami-Dade County , Fla. According to the USDA, the disease has seriously affected citrus production in India , Asia, Southeast Asia, the Arabian Peninsula and Africa .

 To combat the further spread of citrus greening into the U.S., CBP and USDA’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) along with Texas Department of Agriculture and the Texas Citrus Mutual trade association have joined forces to launch a citrus greening public awareness campaign timed to begin with All Souls Day. Future projects include development of a public service announcement on citrus greening and a citrus greening border media tour in Spring 2010. The objective is to educate the community about the devastating impact of citrus greening and what actions they can take to prevent citrus greening from establishing a greater foothold in the U.S.

 Among the actions U.S.-Mexico border residents can take is to remember not to bring any orange jasmine or other prohibited citrus fruits and plants from Mexico or any foreign country into the U.S. Prohibited citrus includes the following: oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, sour oranges and sweet limes. Other popular non-citrus fruits that also are prohibited include guavas, mangoes, peaches and pomegranates. Failure to declare prohibited agricultural items also can result in fines. Penalties for personal importations of undeclared, prohibited agricultural items, depending on the severity of the violation, can run as high as $1,000 and up to more than $250,000 for commercial importations.

 The traveling public can learn more about prohibited fruits, vegetables, plant and animal products and other prohibited items by consulting the “Know Before You Go” guide or the list of top 10 travelers tips at the following link: http://cbp.gov/xp/cgov/travel/vacation/kbyg/

 For more detailed information on Huang Long Bing or Citrus Greening disease, the public can consult the following link on the USDA/APHIS website: http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/plant_pest_info/citrus_greening/index.shtml

 “We would like to commend the partnership between CBP, USDA/APHIS, Texas Department of Agriculture and Texas Citrus Mutual to help get vital information out to the American public about the dangers of citrus greening disease and what the border travelers we process every day at South Texas ports of entry can do to prevent the disease from spreading further,” said Leticia Moran, Director, CBP Field Operations, Laredo Field Office.