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Plant Quarantine and Phytosanitary Service, P/BAG 7, Chilanga, Zambia.

Month: February 2022

23 Feb 22

ONION IMPORTS SUSPENDED

By Brian Mwale; Government has temporarily suspended the issuance of import permits for onions, pending completion of discussions with the Zambia National Farmers Union -ZNFU. This follows ZNFU President, JERVIS ZIMBA’s disclosure that 23-Million Kwacha worth of onions risk going to waste, if imports of the commodity are not halted. Agriculture Permanent Secretary, GREEN MBOZI has confirmed government’s decision, saying discussions with the ZNFU have since started, to ascertain national production and consumption levels of onions. Mr MBOZI has however told ZNBC News that government does not want to create an unnecessary shortage as was the case last year, when the imports were banned. And an Onion farmer from Sinda district, Eastern province, LEVISON NKHOMA said the low prices of imported onions have affected the pricing of local onions, which are produced at a high cost. ONION IMPORTS SUSPENDED ~ (znbc.co.zm)
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22 Feb 22

Press Release: The First International Plant Health Conference

Posted on Mon, 21 Feb 2022, 14:51 The Secretariat of the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) of the United Kingdom are proud to announce that the first International Plant Health Conference (IPHC) will take place from 21 to 23 September 2022 at the Queen Elizabeth II Centre in London, United Kingdom. The Conference will convene countries from around the world to discuss global scientific, technical and regulatory issues related to plant health aiming to contribute to a number of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, amongst other objectives. As one of the main legacies of the International Year of Plant Health 2020, the Conference was originally planned to take place in 2020 and hosted by Finland, but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “I am delighted that the UK is hosting the first International Plant Health Conference, and we look forward to welcoming delegates to London in September,” said Prof. Nicola Spence, CBE, UK Chief Plant Health Officer and head of the British National Plant Protection Organisation leading the host country delegation. “The UK and DEFRA welcome and encourage the participation of the global plant health community to come together and discuss future challenges, including climate change, transboundary pests and the development and use of international standards and guidance. Sharing knowledge and expertise through this conference will help us work together towards strengthening and improving plant health matters and add momentum to the delivery of the IPPC Strategic Framework 2020 – 2030”. Mr Avetik Nersisyan, Officer-in-Charge for the IPPC Secretariat, shared his anticipation for this global event organised by the IPPC community: “The first International Plant Health Conference is a strong, positive step in strengthening collaboration and raising awareness of phytosanitary matters. The IPPC community has been working to continue promoting these initiatives during the past two years of COVID-19 pandemic.” This three-day event will take place in a hybrid mode. All IPHC sessions and side events are going to be streamed online but participants are also encouraged to take part to the event in person. “The possibility to hold the Conference in a hybrid format sends a clear message to the international plant health community that we are moving beyond the COVID-19 pandemic and we are ready to continue advancing the IPPC work through its Strategic Framework 2020 – 2030 and its development agenda.” The IPPC Secretariat and Defra will be joining forces to deliver this global event through the establishment of an organising committee overseeing the IPHC implementation. The IPPC Secretariat and Defra are already working to schedule the first meeting of the IPHC Organising Committee to finalise the programme of the conference and its side events to deliver a memorable first edition. More information on the event will be provided soon. Learn more: International Year of Plant Health International Plant Protection Convention UK Plant Health Information Portal Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs of the United Kingdom Press Release: The First International Plant Health Conference – International Plant Protection Convention (ippc.int)
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16 Feb 22

Commodity standards, a webinar explains new directions in the IPPC work

Posted on Tue, 15 Feb 2022, 21:44 Commodity standards for phytosanitary measures are crucial to safeguard plant-based agriculture, protect the environment and facilitate safe trade. The development of commodity and pathway-specific standards is a key component of the IPPC Strategic Framework 2020-2030. Included amongst the key programmes of the IPPC development agenda for 2020-2030, the adoption of commodity-specific standards is expected to facilitate and accelerate trade negotiations and simplify safe trade in plant products by 2030. The IPPC standard setting work will focus more and more on commodity- or pathway-specific topics in the near future. Seven pathways standards have been already adopted over the past few years, covering wood packaging material, movement of seed, wood, growing media, as well as used vehicles, machinery and equipment. A draft International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures on Commodity specific standards will be presented for adoption at the sixteenth session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measure (CPM-16) in April 2022 and will include annexes for specific commodities. To learn more about these standards and the work of the IPPC on this direction, national and regional plant protection organizations are invited to attend the IPPC webinar on Commodity Standards that will take place on Wednesday, 16 February. This will be a unique opportunity to find out why commodity-based standards are so important and what the global plant health community is doing to develop and implement these standards at the global level. The event will also provide a platform to discuss potential partnerships and networks for the development of specific commodity standards. Phytosanitary and standard setting experts from different regions of the world will address key issues around the concept and principles of commodity standards and the work of the global plant health community in the upcoming years. They will also focus on potential benefits and challenges countries can meet while implementing these standards, especially developing and least developed countries. The draft ISPM that will be presented at CPM-16 and the work of the Technical Panel for Commodity Standards around it will be also central in the discussion. Interested participants can register to the morning session from 9 to 11 am (Rome time) or the evening session from 5 to 7 pm (Rome time). The webinar will be in English with interpretation in all the other UN official languages (Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish). Register to the morning session Register to the afternoon session Learn more about the programme of the event….. Commodity standards, a webinar explains new directions in the IPPC work – International Plant Protection Convention
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14 Feb 22

India-Australia trade agreement to respect each other’s sensitivities: Piyush Goyal, Oz minister

Feb 12, 2022, 07:12 AM IST India and Australia plan to finalise an Interim Trade Agreement in the next 30 days. The deal will cover goods, services, rules of origin, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, customs procedure, and legal and Institutional issues. The two sides have accommodated and respected each other’s sensitivities, commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal and Australia’s trade, tourism and investment minister Dan Tehan said in New Delhi on Friday. “The good part of this friendship is that we have respected each other’s sensitivities,” Goyal said at a joint press conference after concluding their 3-day talks. “And the agreement is only a win-win with absolutely no negatives for both sides… So it’s a win-win agreement, which will satisfy the interests of people and businesses on both sides.” The two nations are expected to sign the interim agreement in March and the India-Australia Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) is expected to be concluded in 12 months thereafter. Read more at:https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/foreign-trade/india-australia-trade-agreement-to-respect-each-others-sensitivities-piyush-goyal-oz-minister/articleshow/89516159.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
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14 Feb 22

Determining host status for fruit flies is essential to facilitating international fruit trade

Posted on Thu, 03 Feb 2022, 12:50 Rome, 28 January 2022. The Expert Working Group (EWG) for the Annex Criteria for the determination of host status of fruit to fruit flies based on available information convened their virtual meeting to draft an annex to the International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures n. 37 (ISPM 37) on Determination of host status of fruit to fruit flies (Tephritidae). The IPPC international standards have been a basis for the application and harmonization of acceptable and technically justified measures applied in international trade. The ISPM 37 describes requirements for determining the host status of a particular fruit to an economically important Tephritidae fruit fly species and designates three categories of host status. The intention of this annex is to promote consistent harmonization of terms used by risk analysts and the phytosanitary community with the ones defined in ISPM 37. It also provides guidance to evaluate criteria consistently when reviewing information and determining fruit fly host status in pest risk analysis. Over the years, literature published on fruit fly host lists has challenged pest risk analysts uncertainty pertaining to these resources. The annex will be crucial to help prevent future trade challenges over whether National Plant Protection Organizations should regulate a particular product based on variable fruit fly host status. The Annex developed by the EWG is planned to be presented to the Standards Committee (SC) in May where it will be considered for approval for first consultation from 1 July to 30 September 2022. The meeting report of the EWG once ready, will be available at the following link: https://www.ippc.int/en/core-activities/standards-setting/expert-drafting-groups/expert-working-groups/
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