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12 SEEDWORLD.COM SEPTEMBER 2015 MOVING TOMATO SEED into the United States isnt easy. Due to a number of disease and pest issues in many foreign countries there are dozens of phytosanitary and other requirements a company must meet to move tomato seed across the border. Its very convoluted and compli- cated says Ric Dunkle senior direc- tor of seed health and trade for the American Seed Trade Association. Its a back breaker because you have to do so much to make sure diseases arent present in the seed. For tomatoes the requirements are especially strict its not a punishment per se but a more stringent form of regu- lation to keep invasive pests and diseases at bay. However a new pilot program that is being launched could allow seed com- panies to self-regulate for one disease in one type of seeds. The National Seed Health Accreditation Pilot Program is a partnership among the seed industry the U.S. Department of Agricultures Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service APHIS and ASTA. The pilot project came about in response to the Cucumber Green Mottle Mosaic Virus CGMMV which was found for the first time in California fields in 2013. The yearlong pilot program officially launched at the end of July. Were looking at a pilot program an idea instead of going through with new rules and regulations to handle some- thing like this says Michael Perry Designed in response to an invasive virus the National Seed Health Accreditation Pilot Program could prevent the need for additional regulation. Brian Wallheimer a USDA-APHIS senior export specialist. Were looking at existing industry mechanisms to manage this and we are looking at the quality management systems out there and making sure they are up to par and accrediting those systems. Virus Introduction In Asia the Middle East and Europe CGMMV has long been known to infect certain cucurbit species including watermelon melon cucumber pumpkin squash and gourds. It has more recently been found in Canada but not in the United States until 2013. The virus which is seed transmissible can cause serious yield losses. According to ASTA the virus shows up as a mot- tling and mosaic in leaves as well as fruit mottling and distortion. Early symptoms include vein clearing and crumpling on young leaves while mature leaves become bleached and chlorotic mild to severe leaf distortion can occur with leaf mottling and blistering and plant stunting ASTA reports. CGMMV was found through a routine field inspection in Yolo County Calif. The field was quarantined and Dunkle says the virus is essentially contained if not eliminated. But its presence set off a need to examine how APHIS industry and other partners would need to respond. Pilot Program Aims to Keep Seeds Disease Free Traditionally USDA would go about setting up new rules or regulations for importing seed that could be affected by CGMMV. That could be anything including required field inspections new phytosanitary requirements or manda- tory laboratory testing of all imports. Those new rules or regulations not only take a long time to implement but they can be costly in terms of time and money for all parties involved. This was a disease we had never been concerned about until this hap- pened Perry says. We would basically place a great amount of scrutiny and effort to keep that pest out.