Agricultural Commissioner / Sealer of Weights & Measure

The United States Department of Food and Agriculture (USDA) along with the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) have added winegrapes to their list of commodities exempt from movement restrictions from areas currently being regulated for Light Brown Apple Moth. This allows conventionally produced winegrapes to move freely within California as well as to other States. This exemption was granted after an exhaustive Pest Risk Analysis evaluating the common agricultural practices of winegrape production in California, and it's impacts on the probability of allowing a reproducible population of LBAM to be shipped to other areas. Winegrapes being shipped to British Columbia, Canada still have to meet Canadian entry requirements. Please contact Gabriel Chan, Robert Pelletier or Jatinder Gill at (209) 953-6000 for more information.

List of exempted commodities Click Here

In March 2007, USDA confirmed the presence of Light Brown Apple Moth in Alameda County. By July of that same year it had been found in 8 San Francisco Bay area Counties as well as the counties of Santa Cruz, Monterey and Los Angeles. Since then, despite numerous methods and attempts at eradication, Light Brown Apple Moth has continued its spread across the cooler regions of California, including moving eastward up the Delta and into San Joaquin County.

A single Light Brown Apple Moth was trapped in Manteca in June 2009. A second moth in July triggered San Joaquin County's first quarantine. This quarantine area was declared eradicated, only to have another series of finds in Tracy area. This began the battle San Joaquin County has been fighting to prevent the spread of LBAM into our county.

The Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM), Epiphyas Postvittana is a leafrolling Tortricid moth, originally from Australia. It has a very large host list, which includes over 2000 different species of plants, impacting many agricultural commodities.

*For a printable map of areas under regulation for LBAM in San Joaquin County Click Here
* For 2021 Statewide Regulated Area Click Here
*To view the areas under regulation for LBAM in San Joaquin County in Google earth

For information on obtaining compliance agreements contact the Agricultural Commissioner's office (209) 953-6000 (Stockton) or 331-7287 (Lodi).

For more information on Light Brown Apple Moth:

UC Cooperative Extension:

UC Pest Management Guidelines
Light Brown Apple Moth

California Department of Food and Agriculture:

Light Brown Apple Moth
San Joaquin County Agricultural Commissioner's Office, growers and nurserymen are working together in an effort to eradicate LBAM from agricultural areas of San Joaquin County, as well as help prevent its spread to other agricultural regions. All growers in the quarantine areas must be under compliance agreement with the Agricultural Commissioner's Office before commodities may be harvested and move from their fields and orchards and vineyards. In addition, harvesters, trucking companies, packers and wineries handling grapes in the quarantine area must also be under compliance agreement. For information on obtaining compliance agreements contact the Agricultural Commissioner's Office (209) 953-6000 (Stockton) or (209) 331-7287 (Lodi).