31 October 2022
This Biosecurity Advice notifies stakeholders of the release of the Final report for the review of biosecurity import requirements for fresh apple fruit from the Pacific Northwest states of the United States of America (PNW-USA).
The final report recommends that the importation of commercially produced mature fresh apple fruit to Australia from all production areas of the PNW-USA be permitted, subject to a range of biosecurity requirements.
The final report takes into consideration comments received from stakeholders on the draft report released on 23 October 2020.
We announced the commencement of the risk analysis on 1 November 2018 (Biosecurity Advice 2018-29) and released the draft report for public consultation on 23 October 2020 (Biosecurity Advice 2020-P10). Stakeholder comments on the draft report were taken into consideration in preparing the final report.
This risk analysis was conducted in response to a formal market access request for fresh apples to Australia from the Pacific Northwest states of the United States of America.
The final report identifies 20 quarantine pests associated with apples from the PNW-USA that require risk management measures to reduce the biosecurity risk to an acceptable level. These pests are:
- fruit fly: apple maggot (Rhagoletis pomonella)
- mites: flat scarlet mite (Cenopalpus pulcher) and McDaniel spider mite (Tetranychus mcdanieli)
- thrips: eastern flower thrips (Frankliniella tritici) and western flower thrips (Frankliniella occidentalis)
- mealybugs: apple mealybug (Phenacoccus aceris) and grape mealybug (Pseudococcus maritimus)
- leafroller and fruit moths: codling moth (Cydia pomonella), European leafroller (Archips rosana), fruit tree leafroller (Archips argyrospila), large fruit tree tortrix (Archips podana), oblique-banded leafroller (Choristoneura rosaceana), orange tortrix (Argyrotaenia franciscana) and Pandemis leafroller (Pandemis pyrusana)
- fungi: apple blotch (Phyllosticta arbutifolia), Gymnosporangiumrusts (Gymnosporangium clavipes, G. juniperi-virginianae and G. libocedri), speck rot (Phacidiopycnis washingtonensis) and Sphaeropsis rot (Sphaeropsis pyriputrescens).
The final report recommends a range of risk management measures, combined with an operational system, to reduce the risks posed by the 20 quarantine pests to achieve the appropriate level of protection for Australia.
The recommended risk management measures take into account regional differences in pest distribution within Australia. Western flower thrips and codling moth have been identified as pests of regional biosecurity concern for the Northern Territory and Western Australia, respectively.
Western flower thrips is identified as a regulated article for all of Australia as it is capable of harbouring and spreading (vectoring) emerging orthotospoviruses that are quarantine pests for Australia.
The recommended risk management measures are:
- for mites, mealybugs and thrips
- pre-export visual inspection and, if found, remedial action
- for apple maggot
- pest free areas, pest free places of production or pest free production sites, or
- an appropriate pre-export phytosanitary treatment approved by us
- for leafrollers
- in-field controls, and pre-export inspection, and if found, remedial action, or
- an appropriate pre-export phytosanitary treatment (such as methyl bromide fumigation) approved by us
- for codling moth
- pest free areas, pest free places of production or pest free production sites, or
- systems approach approved by us, or
- an appropriate pre-export phytosanitary treatment (such as methyl bromide fumigation) approved by us
- for Gymnosporangium rusts
- pre-export visual inspection and, if found, remedial action
- for Sphaeropsis rot, speck rot and apple blotch
- systems approach approved by us.
The unrestricted risk estimate (URE) for 3 pests, apple leafcurling midge (Dasineura mali), fire blight (Erwinia amylovora) and European canker (Neonectria ditissima), achieved the appropriate level of protection for Australia, taking into consideration commercial production practices in place in PNW-USA. Specific commercial production practices are therefore recommended to be mandatory for these 3 pests. These commercial production practices include:
- for apple leafcurling midge
- in-field monitoring and controls, packing house procedures including sorting, grading and packing house sanitation, and pre-export visual inspection and, if found, remedial action
- for fire blight
- in-field monitoring and controls, fruit maturity testing, packing house sanitation, and pre-export visual inspection and, if found, remedial action
- for European canker
- in-field monitoring and controls, packing house sanitation, and pre-export visual inspection and, if found, remedial action.
The final report and more information about this risk analysis are available on our website.
We invite stakeholders interested in receiving information and updates on biosecurity risk analyses to subscribe via our online subscription service. By subscribing to Biosecurity Risk Analysis Plant, you will receive Biosecurity Advices and other notifications relating to plant biosecurity policy, including this risk analysis.
Monica Collins
A/g First Assistant Secretary
Biosecurity Plant Division
Telephone: 1800 900 090 (when prompted, select: option 1, option 1)
Email: imports@aff.gov.au