This year’s Phytosanitary Session will begin with  a recap of the major phytosanitary issues and activities that have occurred throughout 2019, followed by a discussion on the status and future use of the systems approach in international seed trade, including the development of USDA’s ReFreSH initiative.  Earlier this year USDA issued an emergency Federal order on tomato and pepper seed to prevent the introduction of several viroids into the U.S. Because the approach taken in this Federal order could have far reaching impacts on other seed sectors, it will be used as a case study to better understand the potential phytosanitary risks seed poses and how the seed industry and USDA can work in partnership to better manage these risks. ASTA’s new structure for responding to WTO notices, as well as plans for celebrating the 2020 International Year of Plant Health (IYPH) will also be discussed.