[Draft made available to stakeholder comments up to 2023-06-14] 

The purpose of this report is to assess the pest risks associated with importing commercially produced fresh stalks (stems, leaves) of celery, Apium graveolens (Apiaceae), from the United Kingdom into the United States for consumption.

Based on the market access request submitted by the United Kingdom, we considered the pathway to include the following processes and conditions: commercially produced fresh stalks (stems and leaves) of celery that is washed in the field to remove soil and debris. Other production, harvesting, and post-harvesting procedures and shipping and storage conditions in the export area were not considered in this assessment. The pest risk ratings depend on the application of all conditions of the pathway as described in this document; fresh stalks (stems, leaves) of celery produced under different conditions were not evaluated and may pose a different pest risk.

We used scientific literature, port-of-entry pest interception data, and information from the government of the United Kingdom to develop a list of pests with quarantine significance for the United States. These are pests that occur in the United Kingdom on any host and are associated with the commodity plant species anywhere in the world.

The following organisms are candidates for pest risk management because they have met the threshold for unacceptable consequences of introduction and can follow the commodity import pathway:

Euleia heraclei

Ditylenchus dipsaci

Alternaria burnsii

Phytophthora tentaculata