The Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule that, effective May 1, will allow the importation of wooden decorative items and craft products (handicrafts) from China. The rule also amends the regulations pertaining to logs, lumber and other wood articles to define wooden handicrafts to include the following products where wood is present: carvings, baskets, boxes, bird houses, garden and lawn/patio furniture, potpourri, artificial trees (typically artificial ficus trees), trellis towers, garden fencing and edging, and other items composed of wood.

APHIS suspended imports of wooden handicrafts from China in 2005 after issuing more than 300 emergency action notices and conducting national recalls to remove infested Chinese-origin wooden handicrafts from the U.S. over the previous three years. Now, however, based on the evidence in a pest risk analysis, APHIS has determined that these articles can be safely imported from China provided certain conditions are met, including treatments, phytosanitary certificates, inspection and box identifications.nspection and box identifications.