Costa Rica News – The European Union has audited and certified Costa Rican procedures for “plants for planting,” those grown in Costa Rica to be exported to Europe. Costa Rica was part of a group of countries audited. The positive closure of the audit that started in 2015 has just been announced.
This means there will be no interruption to exporting without incident. The State Phytosanitary Service reported that last year $23.7 million worth of plants to plant was placed in the EU.
The plants are planted in mediums other than soil, for example coconut fiber. They must meet strict standards of quality. Every few weeks a visit to the farms is carried out and recorded in compliance with European regulations. The Manual of Good Agricultural Practices has been successfully implemented in Costa Rica.
There is a separate issue in which the EU market blocked the sale of some ornamental plants from Costa Rica because of a suspicion that they are carriers of a bacteria that attacks vineyards and olive trees. This block remains.
