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FPS Grape Introduction Services

FPS as a Grapevine Import and Quarantine Center

As a USDA-APHIS permitted import and quarantine center, Foundation Plant Services provides custom testing and disease elimination services of both international- and domestic-origin grapevine material. These services are available through execution of a custom Service Agreement with University of California, Davis.

Why use FPS for import of new selections?
Grapevines entering the US for planting must complete testing to screen for regulated pathogens, followed by microshoot-tip tissue culture therapy if regulated pathogens are present in the source material. FPS is one of the centers permitted by USDA-APHIS-PPQ to provide this service.

Why would a domestic customer use FPS services?
Many vineyards have a clone of deep importance to them, but it has become infected with a virus. Each year we "clean up" grapevine material for customers who want viruses eliminated from their special clones. US-based breeding programs, both private and at universities, also use FPS services to ensure that their new varieties or selections are clean before commercialization.

Testing and Treatment service includes complete disease testing panel and, if necessary, disease elimination therapy by microshoot-tip tissue culture or heat therapy (including pre- and post-therapy testing panels) to qualify foreign and domestic selections for release from federal quarantine and/or inclusion in the CDFA Registration and Certification Program. The timeline for this service is approximately 2-8 years.

Grapevine material that completes required testing at FPS may also be eligible for inclusion in the CDFA Grapevine Registration & Certification Program. This qualification is important to nurseries who are participants in the program, as it provides them with registered source material. Use of certified vines is an important disease management strategy - read more about California R&C program here.

At the conclusion of Testing and Treatment, one distribution of "clean" material is made to the sponsor of the introduction at no additional cost. If planting in the foundation collection is desired, qualified grapevine material can be planted and maintained in the foundation collection. Vines maintained in the foundation collection are inspected and tested annually to ensure that they remain compliant with the standards of the CDFA Grapevine & Registration program. Material from the vines in the permanent collection can be requested during each dormant distribution period (see material prices/ordering page). To learn more about these services, contact our office via phone (530-574-7379) or email ([email protected]).

Current Service Prices
Last update: 3 April, 2023
Testing & Treatment: $2,500.00 per public selection*
$4,500.00 per proprietary selection
Planting in Foundation collection: $650 per proprietary selection
$200 per year per proprietary selection

*Public introductions for testing and treatment are accepted on a limited basis each year. This process is subsidized using public funding, so the submission must include a demonstrated benefit to the public. After testing and treatment, all material submitted to the public collection is considered for planting in the foundation collection at no cost to the sponsor. The sponsor has no oversight of who receives material - it is distributed to any and all members of the public who request, as long as there is material available.