§ 361.4 - Inspection at the port of first arrival.

§ 361.4 Inspection at the port of first arrival.

(a) All agricultural seed, vegetable seed, and screenings imported into the United States shall be made available for examination by an APHIS inspector at the port of first arrival and shall remain at the port of first arrival until released by an APHIS inspector. Lots of agricultural seed, vegetable seed, or screenings may enter the United States without meeting the sampling requirements of paragraph (b) of this section if the lot is:

(1) Seed that is not being imported for seeding (planting) purposes and the declaration required by § 361.3(a) states the purpose for which the seed is being imported;

(2) Seed that is being shipped in bond through the United States;

(3) Screenings from seeds of wheat, oats, barley, rye, buckwheat, field corn, sorghum, broomcorn, flax, millet, proso, soybeans, cowpeas, field peas, or field beans that are not being imported for seeding (planting) purposes and the declaration accompanying the screenings as required under § 361.2(a) indicates that the screenings are being imported for processing or manufacturing purposes;

(4) Seed that is being imported for sowing for experimental or breeding purposes, is not for sale, is limited in quantity to the amount indicated in column 3 of table 1 of § 361.5, and is accompanied by a declaration stating the purpose for which it is being imported (seed imported for increase purposes only will not be considered as being imported for experimental or breeding purposes); or

(5) Seed that was grown in the United States, exported, and is now returning to the United States, provided that the person importing the seed into the United States furnishes APHIS with the following documentation:

(i) Export documents indicating the quantity of seed and number of containers, the date of exportation from the United States, the distinguishing marks on the containers at the time of exportation, and the name and address of the United States exporter;

(ii) A document issued by a Customs or other government official of the country to which the seed was exported indicating that the seed was not admitted into the commerce of that country; and

(iii) A document issued by a Customs or other government official of the country to which the seed was exported indicating that the seed was not commingled with other seed after being exported to that country.

(b) Except as provided in §§ 361.5(a)(2) and 361.7, samples will be taken from all agricultural seed and vegetable seed imported into the United States for seeding (planting) purposes prior to being released into the commerce of the United States.

(1) Samples of seed will be taken from each lot of seed in accordance with § 361.5 to determine whether any seeds of noxious weeds listed in § 361.6(a) are present. If seeds of noxious weeds are present at a level higher than the tolerances set forth in § 361.6(b), the lot of seed will be deemed to be adulterated and will be rejected for entry into the United States for seeding (planting) purposes. Once deemed adulterated, the lot of seed must be:

(i) Exported from the United States;

(ii) Destroyed under the monitoring of an APHIS inspector;

(iii) Cleaned under APHIS monitoring at a seed-cleaning facility that is operated in accordance with § 361.8(a); or

(iv) If the lot of seed is adulterated with the seeds of a noxious weed listed in § 361.6(a)(2), the seed may be allowed entry into the United States for feeding or manufacturing purposes, provided the importer withdraws the original declaration and files a new declaration stating that the seed is being imported for feeding or manufacturing purposes and that no part of the seed will be used for seeding (planting) purposes.

(2) Seed deemed adulterated may not be mixed with any other seed unless the Administrator determines that two or more lots of seed deemed adulterated are of substantially the same quality and origin. In such cases, the Administrator may allow the adulterated lots of seed to be mixed for cleaning as provided in paragraph (b)(1)(iii) of this section.

(3) If the labeling of a lot of seed is false or misleading in any respect, the seed will be rejected for entry into the United States. A falsely labeled lot of seed must be:

(i) Exported from the United States;

(ii) Destroyed under the monitoring of an APHIS inspector; or

(iii) The seed may be allowed entry into the United States if the labeling is corrected under the monitoring of an APHIS inspector to accurately reflect the character of the lot of seed.