What is Import Alert 28-02?

Import Alert 28-02, “Detention without physical examination of black pepper from India”, is an FDA import alert; FDA last published the alert on March 5, 2026.

How do firms get off Import Alert 28-02?

A firm asks FDA to remove it by submitting evidence that the cause of the listing has been corrected. The Guidance section of the alert on FDA's website gives the procedure and the contact for 28-02; our guide explains the steps and the evidence FDA usually asks for.

What charge does FDA use under Import Alert 28-02?

The charge section of Import Alert 28-02 names FILTHY (filthy, putrid or decomposed substance) and SALMONELLA (Salmonella). Each code is a refusal charge in FDA's reference table; the linked pages give FDA's official statement and refusal counts.

Import Alert 28-02: Detention without physical examination of black pepper from India

FDA last published March 5, 2026FDA alert page

As of October 25, 2026, FDA Import Alert 28-02 (Black pepper from India) has no foreign food firms listed in SupplierRadar's records; it covers black pepper.

Data from FDA public records, last checked October 25, 2026. Request a correction

0
foreign food firms listed: 0
added in the last 90 days: 0
removed in the last 90 days

What changed in the last 90 days

Additions use the date FDA published each listing. Removals are dated by the day SupplierRadar first saw the firm gone; the weekly and daily checks are described on the data sources page.

Removed from Import Alert 28-02

SupplierRadar has recorded no removals from Import Alert 28-02 in the last 90 days, as of October 25, 2026. A removal is shown at the top of this page, and on the firm's own page, the day it is found.

Added to Import Alert 28-02

No firm was added to Import Alert 28-02 in the last 90 days, as of October 25, 2026.

Refusal charges named on this alert

FDA's alert page names these charge codes. The counts are refusal lines FDA recorded under each charge since October 2016, for all firms, not only firms on this alert.

Charge codes named on Import Alert 28-02
Charge code	Meaning	Refusal lines since 2016
FILTHY	Filthy, putrid or decomposed substance	12,348
SALMONELLA	Salmonella	7,020

What the alert covers and why FDA issued it

FDA's wording, with FDA's change markers removed.

Official title: DETENTION WITHOUT PHYSICAL EXAMINATION OF BLACK PEPPER FROM INDIA
Product scope: Black Pepper (including whole peppercorns, ground, crushed, etc.)
Last published: March 5, 2026

From December 1, 1986, through May 31, 1987, 20 out of 60 shipments of black pepper (peppercorns) that were sampled, or 33 percent, were detained for filth. The 20 detentions represented 11 different shippers. These findings resulted in black pepper from India being placed under detention without physical examination in July 1987.
Discussions between FDA and the Government of India resulted in a certification program being implemented by the Export Inspection Council (EIC) of the Indian Ministry of Commerce. Under this program the EIC is committed to: sample and test each lot of black pepper exported to the United states; only permit those lots that comply with FDA's requirements for Salmonella, filth, mold and foreign matter to be exported to the United States; and supply a certificate, to be attached to the shipping manifest of each lot found acceptable for export to the United States.

FDA Import Alert 28-02, Reason for AlertRead it on FDA

Read the rest of the reason

On March 9, 1989, a field assignment issued to NYK-DO and BLT-DO for the collection of Indian black pepper samples from entries with EIC certificates. The objective of the assignment was to determine the effectiveness of the certification program. Results from 23 samples collected during the period of March 1989 through September 1989 did not reveal any violative certified entries.

Because of the apparently successful certification program initiated by the Government of India, detention without physical examination of Indian black pepper shipments will not be invoked when such shipments are accompanied by certificates.

Listing on an import alert is FDA's notice to the firm and a fact an importer must consider in its supplier evaluation under 21 CFR 1.505. What the red, green and yellow lists mean.

Questions about Import Alert 28-02

What is Import Alert 28-02?: Import Alert 28-02, “Detention without physical examination of black pepper from India”, is an FDA import alert; FDA last published the alert on March 5, 2026.
How do firms get off Import Alert 28-02?: A firm asks FDA to remove it by submitting evidence that the cause of the listing has been corrected. The Guidance section of the alert on FDA's website gives the procedure and the contact for 28-02; our guide explains the steps and the evidence FDA usually asks for.
What charge does FDA use under Import Alert 28-02?: The charge section of Import Alert 28-02 names FILTHY (filthy, putrid or decomposed substance) and SALMONELLA (Salmonella). Each code is a refusal charge in FDA's reference table; the linked pages give FDA's official statement and refusal counts.

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SupplierRadar is not affiliated with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Data comes from public FDA records and may contain errors. This is not legal advice; importers remain responsible for their supplier evaluations.