Agrocalidad modifies the phytosanitary requirements for coffee imported from Brazil

The Phyto and Zoosanitary Regulation and Control Agency (Agrocalidad) modified the mandatory phytosanitary requirements for importing Arabica and Robusta coffee beans originating from Brazil, through resolutions AGR-AGROCALIDAD/DE-2026-0096-R and AGR-AGROCALIDAD/DE-2026-0097-R, signed on October 15, 2026, and published in Official Registry No. 406 on Tuesday, November 10, 2026. Both regulations are effective as of their publication in the Official Registry and were processed at the request of the company El Café C.A.

Mandatory treatment against three storage pests

The new regime requires that the shipment be accompanied by an Export Phytosanitary Certificate issued by the National Plant Protection Organization (NPPO) of Brazil, stating a pre-shipment disinfestation treatment against Corcyra cephalonica, Cryptolestes pusillus, and Lasioderma serricorne, using aluminum phosphide at 56% or products with similar action. The minimum doses and times are:

• 3 g/m³ with 10 days of exposure for coffee in stacked bags or sacks, at a minimum temperature of 10 °C.
• 3 g/m³ with 10 days for coffee stored in bulk or in silos, at 10 °C.
• 3 g/m³ with 7 days for bags or sacks and 9 days for bulk or silos, if the minimum temperature is 20 °C.

As an alternative to the treatment, an additional declaration is permitted stating that the shipment is free of these three pests, including the laboratory diagnostic number that supports it.

The requirements are completed with five mandatory compliance conditions:

• Phytosanitary Import Permit issued by the respective area of Agrocalidad.
• Export Phytosanitary Certificate from the NPPO of Brazil with the indicated treatment or declaration.
• Shipment free of soil and any foreign material.
• New, first-use packaging, also free of foreign material.
• Phytosanitary inspection at the point of entry.

Two resolutions to separate Arabica and Robusta

Resolution No. 0268, dated September 4, 2015—published in Official Registry No. 611 on October 20 of that year—jointly established the requirements for both species. The plant health technical report concluded that the modification applied to Coffea arabica necessitated establishing the requirements for Coffea canephora separately; thus, DE-2026-0096-R repeals the provisions of Resolution 0268 exclusively for Arabica coffee, while DE-2026-0097-R repeals the provisions referring to Robusta coffee. The requirements of the 2015 regulation that do not correspond to these species remain in effect.

Agrocalidad classifies coffee beans for consumption in the Risk 3 category, according to ISPM No. 32 of the International Plant Protection Convention.

A procedure initiated at the request of a private company

The file began with Memorandum No. AGR-AGROCALIDAD/CSV-2026-000920-M, dated August 4, 2026, in which the General Coordination of Plant Health requested the Executive Director to authorize the legalization of the proposal, arguing that the regulated pests and applicable measures had been determined with technical-scientific evidence and agreed upon with the Brazilian phytosanitary authority. The General Directorate of Legal Counsel reviewed the technical report via Memorandum No. AGR-AGROCALIDAD/DAJ-2026-000680-M, dated August 19, 2026, and the observations were corrected before the Coordination submitted the updated reports on September 27, 2026, with Memorandum No. AGR-AGROCALIDAD/CSV-2026-001170-M.

Both instruments are signed by Mgs. Eduardo Andrés Cantos Cortez, Executive Director of Agrocalidad, appointed to the position on July 25, 2026, through personnel action DARH-2026-0408 signed by Minister Juan Carlos Vega Malo. The resolution for arabica stipulates notifying the measure to the World Trade Organization (WTO), the General Secretariat of the Andean Community, and the NPPO of Brazil, in addition to updating the requirements on the Agency’s IT platform; the one for robusta includes notification to the WTO.

The change directly affects importers, roasters, and marketers who supply the Ecuadorian market with Brazilian beans: from now on, each shipment must certify the disinfestation treatment or laboratory analysis, use new packaging, and undergo inspection at the point of entry—requirements that may increase costs and delay operations. The measure also leaves the certification of origin in the hands of Brazil’s phytosanitary authority, which shifts the responsibility to the exporter to comply with verifiable doses, times, and temperatures.

Source: Official Registry No. 406, November 10, 2026, section I, pages 47 and 52 (official reference: AGR-AGROCALIDAD/DE-2026-0096-R and AGR-AGROCALIDAD/DE-2026-0097-R).