Comment from Frank Messina

I am a wholesale grower/ exporter of Tillandsia/ Bromeliads in California. Current regulations of the E.U. require me to have my nursery inspected every 3 weeks for various pests that we never encounter. All shipments are also dipped in insecticide prior to export. These inspections cost me almost $3,000.00 annually for the county agent to perform the inspection. Add to this, the cost of the individual phyto-sanititary inspection for the individual order and the cost of the PICET. This effectively creates a trade barrier for U.S growers to market their Bromeliads in the E.U. Please advocate that this protectionism be removed by the E.U. prior to any amendments to the current agreement. Frank Messina Tillandsia international