<p>The first shipment of Uruguayan citrus into the US in almost 20 years has been cleared through customs. The successful shipment was a joint effort by Customized Brokers, USDA and Uruguayan Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Customized Brokers is a Miami-based subsidiary of Crowley Maritime Corporation.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Two refrigerated containers were cleared through customs and arrived at the Packer Avenue Marine Terminal in South Philadelphia, according to a press release. The shipment served as a test run, ahead of Uruguay's citrus season, which runs from May through September.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">“Taking part in a milestone such as this allows Customized Brokers to foster relationships with vested parties in the Uruguayan citrus program and expose them to the interrelated and complementary services Crowley is able to offer to perishables shippers throughout the Caribbean Basin and beyond,” said Donohue.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">The USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services recently issued a new rule which allowed the importation from Uruguay of several varieties of fresh citrus, citrus hybrids, and the citrus-related genus Fortunella. The agency enforces strict sanitation and pest control requirements for these kinds of imports.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">It has been estimated that the new imports will allow Uruguay to export about $20 million in citrus annually, and will directly benefit 15,000 Uruguayan citrus growers.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Although initial shipments will be delivered to Philadelphia, there are plans to import the fruit into South Florida. A recently announced pilot program that currently allows for the clearance of cold-treatment perishables such as blueberries and grapes from Peru and Uraguay is expected to be expanded to include citrus.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">Allowing the perishables to enter Florida will benefit shippers and southern-based consumers. The change would also have the added environmental benefit of reducing emissions. If the pilot program goes well, it is expected to be expanded to allow the importation of additional new products.<hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.customizedbrokers.net/" target="_new"> Customized Brokers </a><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><a class="btn btn-sm btn-primary col-lg-12" style="white-space: normal;" href="http://www.crowley.com/" target="_new"> Crowley Maritime Corporation </a></p><hr class="legacyRuler"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding"><hr class="invisible minimal-padding">
