NAMA Comments on
The Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service
Interim Rule on Agricultural Inspection
and AQI user fees along the
US/Canadian border
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November 13, 2006
Via e-filing: http:www.regulations.gov
Regulatory Analysis and Development, PPD
APHIS, United States Department of Agriculture
Station 3A-03.8
4700 Rive Road, Unit 118
Riverdale, MD 20737-1238Re: Docket No. APHIS – 2006-0096
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Dear: Sir or Madam
The North American Millers' Association (NAMA) is the trade association representing the wheat, corn, oat and rye milling industry. NAMA’s 48 member companies operate 170 mills in 38 states and Canada. Their aggregate production of more than 160 million pounds per day is approximately 95 percent of the total industry capacity. We appreciate having the opportunity to comment on The Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) interim rule on agricultural inspection and AQI user fees along the US/Canadian border.
The US milling industry relies heavily on imports of raw commodities and milled products from Canada. These products are grown in environmental conditions similar to the US and have proven not to pose plant health risks. Nearly 100 percent of the oat-based foods consumed in the US are made with Canadian oats because adequate domestic supplies are unavailable. In 2005, the US imported over one million metric tons of wheat from Canada.
A primary concern of the members of NAMA is the disruption of the robust cross-border trade between the US and Canada. US mills operate on a just-in-time system and delays wreak havoc on our production and delivery schedules. APHIS has provided insufficient information on how the inspections will be conducted in the interim rule. Given that new hiring and infrastructure enhancements have not begun, we can only assume that significant delays will occur. It is impossible to estimate the cost impact of increased border congestion without specific detailed information on inspection protocols.
NAMA member companies comply with the Food & Drug Administration’s (FDA) mandatory bioterrorism regulations that require prior notification of imported products, registration of foreign suppliers, and identification of supply chains through recordkeeping. A number of NAMA members also voluntarily participate in the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) C-TPAT partnership program to secure the supply chain. These programs were designed to help officials identify low and high-risk cargo and promote border efficiency. This information should be sufficient for APHIS to implement risk-based procedures for inspection of agricultural imports from Canada. The substantial volume of trade between the US and Canada and significant bilateral cooperation between the two countries underscores the need for an approach to AQI inspection on the northern border which is distinct from that used for other countries.
NAMA members are concerned that the objective of the interim rule discounts the minimal risks posed by agricultural products of Canadian origin and preempts bi-lateral approaches to mitigating risks posed by imports from third countries. Although we understand that internal risk assessments have been performed by APHIS on the Canadian border, these do not incorporate relevant data from 2004 to the present and have not been made available to stakeholders. Raw grain and finished milled products coming from Canada have histor ically met risk-based, regulatory requirements and can not reasonably pose a greater risk or emergency now than before.
NAMA members also object to the imposition of new AQI user fees on all conveyances from Canada. US millers have hundreds of trucks and rail cars crossing the northern border daily. Again, the unique nature of the cross-border trade relationship between the US and Canada warrants the current exemption from user fees. According to a May 2006 GAO report, APHIS identified in 2004 that lifting the Canadian exemption on AQI user fees was necessary to meet program costs. This means there was ample opportunity for the agency to seek genuine input from stakeholders through a proposed rulemaking process.
The North American Millers’ Association respectfully requests that the interim rule be withdrawn in order for the US government to facilitate open dialogue with affected industries and the Canadian government. At the very least, the interim rule should be delayed until APHIS’ implementation plan can be fully detailed to affected stakeholders, including a thorough explanation of coordination between APHIS, FDA and CBP on inspection procedures. However, if the interim rule does go into effect, staff must be comprehensively trained on proper inspection protocols to prevent conveyances from being improperly resealed following government inspections that would result in significant losses for our industry.
Thank you for your consideration of our concerns.
Sincerely,
Betsy Faga
President
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