pmurphy

There is a lot of "information" floating about regarding the requirements for bringing plants into Canada, and they are pretty strict. And for those of us who like bananas - or any other tropical plant - it is just about impossible to find what we are looking for here in Canada so we look longingly to our neighbors to the south and try to think of ways to get what we want.
Well, I just found out some interesting information about bringing bananas into Canada. I discovered that some nurseries in the US suggest having plants shipped to a US address and then bringing them across via car, as per the Canadian Food Inspections website:

[i]2.2 Import Requirements. The import of houseplants under these
specified conditions must be for personal and non-commercial use only.
For a shipment to be considered non-commercial, the total number of
plants must not exceed 50 houseplants. The houseplants must accompany
the importer at time of entry into Canada, in baggage or as part of
household effects. This directive does not include mail and courier
importations of the regulated commodities intended for personal use and
these importations must meet the standard plant import requirements.
Because the soil might be a source of quarantine pests, the houseplants
must not be planted outside at any time even if they might not survive
Canadian winters. Note: Houseplants of some plant species must comply
with the CITES requirements (See section 2.6)
2.3.1 Houseplants for personal and non-commercial use from continental
US. A Permit to Import or a Phytosanitary Certificate is not required,
except if the houseplants are from SOD regulated areas (refer to policy
directive D-01-01 for details on regulatory requirements)..."
[i]

I forwarded this information to the CFIA in Ottawa and posed the question: is this an acceptable option?
The response I received is the following:

Yes, that would be an acceptable option. Please see Section 3.1 of
D-08-04 for the all the information on importing houseplants. In brief, the
important thing is to have no more than 50 plants, and for the plants to
accompany you at the time you are crossing the border. They would need
to be free of pests and would be subject to inspection, but you would
not need a Permit to Import or a Phytosanitary Certificate. Banana
plants are not one of the examples of houseplants listed in Appendix 7
of D-08-04, but they are ok.
As D-08-04 says, this exemption does not apply for plants coming from
areas of the U.S. regulated for Phytophthora ramorum (sudden oak death).
Please see Appendix 2 of D-01-01 for the list of regulated areas.
(I have been able to determind that the "SOD" area are counties in California and Oregon.)

The long and the short of this means that bananas can be shipped to a US address and then picked up and driven across the border without any permits or certificates required. You simply have to find a US address.....and for those Canadians living in the Vancouver BC or Lower Mainland area there is just such an address in Point Roberts, WA.

So watch out......I will be perusing US nurseries this winter and come spring, will be having some of the more exotic bananas shipped to Washington state before coming north to joining my collection. After all, isn't that what a greenhouse if for....?

sunfish

I am pretty sure by houseplant they mean bringing in plants that you have been growing as house plants not ones you will grow as houseplants

sunfish

sunfish

pmurphy

I have been communicating with this woman at the CFIA for a while as I have been trying to find out what is needed to import bananas into Canada. I explained to her that I wanted some tropical types for my greenhouse so she is well aware of the type of "houseplant" I am after. There is a website call AIRS which is the CFIA "automated import reference system". Using this system you can determine what is needed to bring something into the country. As per the system, you must use the general term of houseplant as using any latin name or common plant name if too specific therefore they are lumped under the generic. Using this system, if I wanted to order a plant from Florida and have it shipped to Washington State where I would pick it up, no permits are required.

As her instructions and the AIRS website:

HS DESCRIPTION: 060290
06 Live trees and other plants; bulbs, roots, and like; cut flowers and ornamental foliage
02 Other live plants (including their roots), cuttings and slips; mushroom spawn
90 Other
OGD EXTENSION: 00229
0022 Other propagative materials - (House plants, for personal use and not for resale)
99 Other - houseplants (houseplants, for personal use and not for resale, exluding chrysanthemum)
ORIGIN: UFL
US United States
UFL Florida
DESTINATION: BC
BC British Columbia
END USE: 46
46 Travellers & personal use and not for resale or distribution
MISCELLANEOUS: 713
713 plants accompanying importer at time of entry into Canada

Recommendations to CBSA/Documentation and Registration Requirements
APPROVED

Importer / Broker Instructions
Houseplants must be for personal and non-commercial use only (total number of plants must not exceed 50 houseplants). Houseplants must accompany the importer at the time of entry into Canada in baggage or as part of household effects.
- subject to inspection by CFIA

If, however, I was to bring in plants from Thailand, I would - as per AIRS - be require not only to have the phyto certification but an import permit as well. If I wanted to bring some plants from California, I would require a phyto certificate because of SOD - "sudden oak death" which is transmitted through soil - regardless of whether I was shipping them direct to Canada or picking them up Washington.
So far I have discovered that both Florida and Georgia are places that I can order from and have shipped to Washington where I would pick them up.

Olafhenny

__________________
The reason I joined this forum was to share experiences,
my own and those of others and to learn from them.

sunfish

How would you not know who to ask ?

pmurphy

Unfortunately dealing with the government is a bit of a mystery here.
When I was dealing with the Canadian government regarding this issue I started with Agriculture Canada - thinking it would be the logical choice - but they then directed me through several other departments before "someone helpful" pointed me towards the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and from there to the Permits Office.
Now, if you live on the east coast there is no problem trying to call and actually speak with a real person but when living in the west you have to reply mostly on email as there are no toll free 1-800 numbers for these departments - only local numbers that inccur long distance charges and odd hours as they are 3 hours ahead of us. So this means you are left waiting for someone to respond to your query (I am still waiting to hear back from some departments I contacted during my search.) And if you go onto their website you will find that referred links given to you by the various departments, have changed and you are directed back to the home page where, unless you know exactly what you are looking for it is like being dropped in the middle of a maze without the bread crumbs. Unfortunately we do not have local branches in the individual provinces and have to deal directly with the federal government in Ottawa.
Hows that for a quick less in dealing with the Canadian government....
Pam

Olafhenny

__________________
The reason I joined this forum was to share experiences,
my own and those of others and to learn from them.

Olafhenny

__________________
The reason I joined this forum was to share experiences,
my own and those of others and to learn from them.

JP

Agriculture Will want phyto. Customs is going to refer the plants to them and then, if there's no phyto, you loose everything. You might need an import permit too. Even if the it clears with customs, it is automatically referred to agriculture and they do whatever they want. I spoke with an ACIA expert yesterday.

Snarkie

And this guy knows Canadian law!

__________________
Doug (D.A. Hänks) http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2955582/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1


The Only Eastern Redwood Forest in America




"Nuke my 'nanners, will you?!"

JP

Yep!

Snarkie

Got some oranges for you, if you still want them.

__________________
Doug (D.A. Hänks) http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2955582/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1


The Only Eastern Redwood Forest in America




"Nuke my 'nanners, will you?!"

JP

PM sent.