Fruit and vegetables

Check our Biosecurity Import Conditions system (BICON) for biosecurity import conditions and imported food safety requirements.

All biosecurity import conditions must be met before imported food safety requirements apply.

Food type

Fruit and vegetables referred for testing include fresh, chilled, frozen and dried commodities.

Before importing, check that the fruit or vegetable intended for sale for human consumption is not a prohibited plant or fungi listed in Schedule 23 of the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code.

For example:

• Alocasia macrorrhiza (giant taro)
• Manihot esculenta Crantz (cassava other than sweet cassava)
• Areca catechu nut (betel nut).

Exclusions

• Fruit and vegetable juices, purees and concentrates.
• Food from New Zealand.

Inspection and testing

We refer consignments for analytical testing at the rate of 5%. During inspection, we will also conduct a visual and label assessment.

Additional requirements apply to certain fruit:

• berries that are ready-to-eat
• melons
• pomegranate arils that are ready-to-eat.

Table 1 shows the tests that will be applied and permitted results for the food type.

Table 1, Food type, test applied and permitted result

n = the minimum number of sample units that must be examined from a lot of food.
c = the maximum allowable number of defective sample units, that have counts between ‘m’ and ‘M’.
m = the acceptable microbiological level in a sample unit.
M = the level, which when exceeded (the level is greater than M), in one or more samples would cause the lot to be rejected.

Fruit and vegetable residue screen analysis

These are the chemical tests applied to fruit and vegetables.

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