Japan's strawberries coming to Philippine markets

MANILA, Philippines — Fresh Japanese strawberries are set to be available in Philippine markets after both countries reached an agreement to lift the export ban on the fruit starting Sunday, December 15.

The Japanese Embassy in Manila announced last week that Japan's agriculture ministry has successfully ironed out an agreement with Philippine quarantine authorities to resume fresh strawberry exports to the country.

"The ban on exporting fresh strawberries to the Philippines will be officially lifted on 15 December 2024," the Japanese Embassy said in its announcement on Friday, December 13. 

The resumption of strawberry imports comes after Japan's agriculture ministry engaged in "extensive technical discussions with the Philippine quarantine authorities, driven by requests from Japanese production areas," the embassy said. These discussions focused on addressing previous concerns over agricultural pests associated with Japan's strawberries.

Japan's agriculture ministry announced in a press release that strawberry exports to the Philippines must meet four key quarantine requirements: the registration of production facilities, pest monitoring (specifically for Drosophila suzukii fruit flies) and pre-export testing for pesticide residues and microbial contaminants. 

All strawberries will also undergo inspection by Philippine authorities, according to Japan's agriculture ministry.