SAN JUAN – The St. Kitts and Nevis Department of Agriculture announced on Friday an immediate ban on imports of agricultural products from the Dominican Republic, where the presence of the Mediterranean fruit fly has been detected.The measure includes all fruits, vegetables, seeds, grains, cut flowers and branches, the government said in a statement.

“The ban was put in place to ensure there is no introduction of the pest into our local agricultural sector,” said the department’s quarantine officer, Jeanelle Kelly.

The ban is expected to continue “until the Dominican Republic has successfully shown that satisfactory plant health measures have been employed to control and/or eradicate the pest,” Kelly added.