27 August 2026
Who does this notice affect?
Importers of high-risk plant products, other-risk plant products (including seeds for sowing); domestic research institutions; peak industry bodies in cargo, seeds, organic and plant product sectors; international travellers; international mail recipients; trading partners; offshore treatment providers; grain and other stored product industry participants.
What has changed?
We have released the final report for the pest risk analysis (PRA) for khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium) – Part 1 (plant product pathways). The final report concludes Part 1 of the PRA and provides the scientific justification for ongoing risk management measures to address the biosecurity risks posed by khapra beetle. The current emergency measures remain in place until updated import conditions are finalised and published on BICON.
The PRA was conducted to:
- assess the risk of khapra beetle
- evaluate the effectiveness of the current khapra beetle emergency measures (also known as 'urgent actions')
- determine appropriate ongoing measures to achieve Australia's Appropriate Level of Protection (ALOP).
As outlined in Import Industry Advice Notice 287-2025, the PRA is being delivered in 2 parts. Part 1 focuses on plant product pathways and has now been completed. Part 2 will focus on the sea container pathway. We expect to release the draft report for Part 2 in early 2027 for public consultation.
What does the final report recommend?
The final report recommends ongoing risk management measures, combined with an operational system, to achieve Australia's Appropriate Level of Protection (ALOP).
The recommended measures largely mirror the current khapra beetle emergency measures for plant products. Specifically, the final report recommends that:
- all 7 of the existing emergency measures are maintained as ongoing risk management measures
- an additional measure is introduced for plant products imported for research purposes.
The final report also recommends some amendments to the existing emergency measures. These include:
- revised phytosanitary certification requirements for treated consignments, including confirmation that representative samples are inspected after treatment and found free from all live insects, including Trogoderma species
- requiring offshore treatment providers conducting relevant khapra beetle treatments to be registered and approved under an Australian pre-border biosecurity treatment provider scheme (AFAS or AusTreat).
Two key changes that were proposed in the draft report have already been implemented through updates to the emergency measures on 30 April 2026. These are:
- updating the list of target-risk khapra beetle countries to include 7 additional countries: Angola, Chad, Guinea, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Tanzania.
- The draft report also recommended adding Turkmenistan to this list. However, Turkmenistan’s National Plant Protection Organisation provided information to support its status as free from khapra beetle, so it was not added to the list.
- updating Australia's list of Trogoderma species of biosecurity concern to remove Trogoderma serraticorne.
Background information
Khapra beetle is not present in Australia but poses a significant threat to the country’s grain industry as a serious storage pest with potential impacts on international trade. It is ranked as Australia’s second highest National Priority Plant Pest and the highest for the grains industry. The beetle destroys grain quality, rendering it unfit for human consumption.
After observing an increase in khapra beetle interceptions during 2020, the department implemented emergency measures in September 2020 to reduce the risk of entry.
Further information
For further information, see:
- Khapra beetle pest risk analysis
- Urgent actions to protect against khapra beetle
- Measures for plant products under the khapra beetle urgent actions
- Measures for sea containers under the khapra beetle urgent actions
For questions and information related to the Khapra beetle pest risk analysis please contact us at plantstakeholders@aff.gov.au.