Blueberry maggot is a "regulated pest" which means there are restrictions in place to prevent its spread across the country. Most of the highbush blueberry production region in Ontario falls into an area where blueberry maggot is considered to be present. If you want to ship blueberries out of this area to a non-infested area, such as Muskoka region or northern Ontario, you will need to be part of the blueberry maggot certification program, and complete your paperwork well ahead of harvest. The paperwork for this takes 2-3 weeks and should be completed ASAP.

The blueberry maggot certification program falls under the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) jurisdiction. To be part of this program contact the CFIA in your region- there is a list of local CFIA offices on the web or in publication 360, page 348. In south central Ontario the contact person is Julie Holmes, (905) 570-7355 Julie.Holmes@inspection.gc.ca.

This link takes you to information on the certification program and the application you need to fill out and return to the CFIA is in Appendix 5.

This map shows the counties and municipalities in Ontario that are regulated for blueberry maggot. All counties and municipalities in the southern portion of Ontario are regulated. The northern boundary of the regulated area runs from the northern municipal boundary of Horton and Renfrew, along Roads 132, 41, 28, 121, 118 and 11; and across the northern boundary of Simcoe County.

Figure 1. Adult stage of blueberry maggot

Figure 2. Blueberry maggot regulated area. Blueberries can be shipped freely within the area indicated in red. If shipping outside this area to regions where blueberry maggot does not occur, growers must be on a blueberry maggot certification program administered by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.