With the opening of the FPS National Grapevine Importation and Clean Stock Facility in September of 1994, FPS became the first and only dedicated importation facility for Vitis (grape) material in the United States, with importation protocol overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service Plant Protection & Quarantine Program (USDA-APHIS-PPQ).   The importation facility was realized as a result of support from grape industry advocates nationwide, and was built with a combination of funding from USDA-CSRS, the University of California, and all of the California industries served by FPS.

  The FPS facility currently includes a 4000 square foot laboratory and office complex, four greenhouses (5400 square feet), two screenhouses (3600 square feet), a headhouse (2500 square feet), a refrigeration storage building (1000 square feet), and a soil storage building (720 square feet).  Plans are in progress to add another greenhouse in the future.

  The importation program grew in response to a great demand for an efficient, legal means for the U.S. industry to be able to import grapes clones and varieties from all over the world.  A major goal of the importation program is to prevent, through strict quarantine protocols, the introduction of potentially-devastating exotic pests and diseases into U.S. and California vineyards.  Importation services are provided on a fee-for-service basis as part of the custom disease testing and elimination services offered by FPS.  Grape materials coming into the U.S. through the FPS facility are kept in isolated screenhouses while undergoing observation and rigorous disease testing.  If materials test healthy, they are released to the sponsor, and if desired, can qualify for inclusion in the California Registration & Certification Program for Grapevines.  If materials test positive for disease, they undergo disease elimination treatment by meristem tip culture, and are then retested to ensure that disease has been removed prior to release, a process that takes a minimum of two years and sometimes as much as ten years.

  If you are thinking of contracting with FPS for importation services, it is helpful to contact grape program manager Ms. Susan Nelson-Kluk well ahead of time regarding the particulars of your situation and the details and timing of the process.  She will help you determine which custom service option will best meet your particular needs, assist you in filling out the custom service request form, and provide instructions on how to ship foreign candidate material to FPS.   It is best to submit the service request form before December 15th because that is a deadline used for selecting applicants for the following January-to-April quarantine testing season if demand exceeds the program capacity.  This also gives FPS time to make test preparations and arrangements to obtain the foreign source materials before May 1st.  However, every effort will be made to serve your needs, regardless of the season, if possible.

  An outline of the importation process is included in an FPS document entitled "How to Use FPS Custom Grapevine Disease Testing, Disease Elimination & Importation (Quarantine) Services" available on the Web site by clicking here or by request from the FPS office at (530) 752-3590.