The National Agri-Food Health and Quality Service (Senasa) gave a training course for applicants for the inspection of citrus packaging, within the framework of the Fresh Citrus Fruit Certification Program for export to the European Union and markets with similar restrictions quarantine.
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The sessions were led by the staff of the Plant Protection Coordination of the NOA South Regional Center of Senasa and had the collaboration of the Production Secretariat of Tucumán, the technical staff of the Phytopathology and Agricultural Zoology section of the Obispo Colombres Agroindustrial Experimental Station (EEAOC) , and the NOA Phytosanitary Association (AFINOA).
The Senasa auditorium hosted the theoretical class, while the practical part took place at the AFINOA facilities. The content of the training consisted of the identification of symptoms compatible with quarantine diseases and detailed knowledge of current regulations.
Around two hundred applicants continued their activities with two evaluations arranged for the selection of inspectors, a first practical exam and a theoretical one.
The export of Tucumán citrus fruits places Argentina in a place of excellence in terms of the quality of fresh fruit and by-products.
To sustain this condition, the Program proposes the permanent updating of technicians, achieving higher quality in health control. For this reason, training sessions are held every year before the start of each campaign.
In order to comply with the quarantine requirements established for the introduction of fresh citrus fruit into the countries of the European Union, Senasa executes and controls the Program whose purpose is to guarantee that the fruit produced in the Northeast and Northwest regions of Argentina (NEA and NOA) comply with the phytosanitary requirements established in international regulations.
Through its execution, it is established that it is mandatory to adopt different phytosanitary measures in the successive stages of cultivation and regulates the procedure in the packing plants and at the point of departure. ■