If the handler you work with supplies walnuts to Europe, chances are you have already heard about the ‘phosphite/fosetyl’ issue. So what exactly is the issue?
If the handler you work with supplies walnuts to Europe, chances are you have already heard about the ‘phosphite/fosetyl’ issue. So what exactly is the issue?
Background
In late 2013, the European Union (EU) classified all phosphite products (k-phite, nutriphite, potassium phosphite, and so on) as pesticides and established maximum residue limit (MRL) for various commodities. However, the real problem was that the MRL was measured in terms of fosetyl, a compound not used on walnuts and allowed on only non-bearing tree nuts, if at all. Because tree nuts don’t use fosetyl, we received a default MRL of 2 ppm. But by using fosetyl to measure all phosphite residues, the EU ignored the possibility of residues originating from sources other than fosetyl. This resulted in a significant impact on trade. When the EU realized this, it created a temporary MRL of 75 ppm which expires at the end of 2015.
Current Situation
The California Walnut Commission, in conjunction with other tree nut groups (almonds and pistachios), is urging the EU to extend the temporary MRL by 3-4 years. This is in order to finish the IR-4 residue trials that are underway at UC Davis and submit the resulting data to the EU for establishing a proper import tolerance.
In addition to the technical efforts, we have also involved various federal agencies (USDA, USTR, FAS, EPA) by making them understand the serious impact on trade that is likely should the EU not extend the temporary MRL. These agencies have been helpful and are engaged with their European counterparts to support our efforts. In recent days, there have been encouraging signs from key European countries (Germany, UK, Italy, Spain) declaring support for an extension. The Standing Committee met on September 21, 2015, and are open to extending the temporary MRL. We are glad that our efforts to keep trade with the EU have been successful. We will keep the industry updated on any further developments.
