FAQs related to Review of GM plant containment breach nears completion
ERMA New Zealand supports the Environmental Risk Management Authority in its decision making role for applications to import, develop, or field test new organisms; or to import or manufacture hazardous substances. These applications are made under Part V of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996.
Testing typically takes two to seven days, depending on laboratory workloads. Most importers arrange for testing to be conducted offshore prior to shipment of seeds, so delays at the border are not anticipated.
The importer is required to meet the costs of testing. The testing costs between $340 and $560, depending on which of the three MAF approved laboratories conduct the testing (USA, France or Australia).
The MAF-approved test, which requires a sample size of 3200 seeds, will detect GM if it is present in the sample 99.9% of the time. A sample size of 3200 seeds (required by all of the MAF testing protocols) provides a 95% confidence that GM seed will be sampled from a seed lot if it is present in concentrations of 0.1% or more (greater than or equal to 1 in 1000 seeds).
Most imported seed is grown into pasture or lucerne hay for feeding livestock. A smaller proportion is sprouted as alfalfa sprouts for human consumption.
In 2005, New Zealand imported approximately 37,000 kg of lucerne seed for sowing and approximately 9, 000 kg seed for sprouting.
| Seed for Sowing | Seed for Sprouting | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 July ‘04- 30 June ‘05 | 1 July ‘04- 30 June ‘05 | |||
| Exporting country | Weight (kg) | Proportion (%) | Weight (kg) | Proportion (%) |
| United States of America | 25 000 | 66.5% | 2 720 | 29.5% |
| Australia | 10 410 | 27.5% | 6 500 | 70.5% |
| Italy | 2 200 | 6% | ||
| TOTAL | 37 610 |
9 220 | ||
Production of lucerne for livestock and alfalfa sprouts in New Zealand relies on seed imported from large breeding programmes in the US, Australia and Europe. New Zealand’s own lucerne and alfalfa seed production industry is small, and is localised in areas of Canterbury and Otago where climatic and soil conditions are favourable. Overseas specialised breeding programmes offer growers a wider range of seed selections not otherwise available to the New Zealand industry.
Medicago sativa is the Latin name for lucerne, also called alfalfa. The seeds may be grown as a forage crop or lucerne hay for feeding livestock, or sprouted to produce alfalfa sprouts for human consumption.
The protocol will require importers to have consignments of viable lucerne/alfalfa seed tested for the presence of GM seed at one of the three MAF approved testing laboratories located in Australia, France or the US.
Importers of viable lucerne seed for producing animal feed and alfalfa seed for human consumption will be affected.
MAF would like to hear feedback from people who have an interest in, or would be affected by, the seed testing protocol. The protocol would be put in place by amending the existing Import Health Standards for Medicago sativa ( Seed for Sowing and Importation of Grains/Seeds for Consumption, Feed or Processing – Plant Health Requirements).
The purpose of a seed testing protocol is to minimise the likelihood that GM seed will inadvertently be imported into New Zealand within consignments of conventional seed. MAF already has seed testing protocols in place for maize and sweet corn, oilseed Brassica, and soybeans, which were implemented in 2001 and 2002. MAF intends to extend these requirements to lucerne/alfalfa because two varieties of genetically modified (GM) lucerne are entering commercial production in the US for the first time this year.
MAF is responsible for enforcing the ‘new organism’ provisions of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 (the HSNO Act). GM lucerne is considered a ‘new organism’ under the HSNO Act and cannot legally be imported or grown in New Zealand. The HSNO Act prohibits the importation, field-testing or release of any ‘new organism’ without approval from the Environmental Risk Management Authority (ERMA). To date, no GM organisms have been approved for release in New Zealand.
All poles, posts or rounds imported into New Zealand will be inspected on arrival in New Zealand for pests, evidence of pest infestation, or for unwanted organic contamination such as soil or bark.
Poles, posts or rounds found to be contaminated with pests or soil or bark will need to be treated (if you want the items to enter New Zealand), re-shipped (sent back) or destroyed (incinerated). The treatment will depend on the contaminant found (e.g. fumigation for insects or bark, heat treatment for fungi).
Poles, posts or rounds from Pines trees (genus Pinus) that are being imported from areas not considered by Biosecurity New Zealand to be free of Fusarium circinatum (Pine pitch canker), must be heat treated to a core temperature of 70oC for 4 hours.
All treatment or destruction costs will need to be met by the importer.
If you want to be sure of avoiding difficulties on arriving in NZ, make sure that all poles, posts or rounds you bring into New Zealand are either free of pests, bark and soil (dirt), or have been certified treated by one of the methods described in the import health standard.
Under the Biosecurity Act 1993, decisions on issuing import health standards are the responsibility of the Director-General of MPI, on the recommendation of a Chief Technical Officer from Biosecurity New Zealand. Biosecurity New Zealand is the part of MPI that administers the Biosecurity Act.
In March 2002, the FAO Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures adopted new guidelines for wood packaging for international trade. These were called the International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) No 15: Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging Material in International Trade (ISPM 15).
ISPM 15 describes phytosanitary measures to reduce the risk of introduction and/or spread of quarantine pests associated with wood packaging material (including dunnage), made of coniferous and non-coniferous raw wood, for international trade.
New Zealand, as a signatory to the International Plant Protection Convention, has revised its own wood packaging import standard to more closely align it with this international standard.
Internationally wood packaging is recognized as an important pathway in the transmission of pests. A significant proportion of wood packaging is manufactured from relatively low quality raw wood which is likely to contain pests.
Many invasive pests have been intercepted on wood dunnage, pallets, crating or other wood packaging imported into New Zealand.
Most international exporters will be aware of, if not already complying with, the ISPM 15 standard so explaination of the New Zealand standard should not be too difficult.
We recommend e-mailing the link to the full standard to all your suppliers for them to review.
There are a number of different pest that could be found on untreated wood packaging. Some examples are:
- Powder post beetle
- Asian longhorn beetle
- Citrus longhorn beetle
- Subterranean termite
Even if wood packaging is treated accredited persons should still watch out for other pests and diseases that might be in their consignment. Re-infestation of treated wood packaging is also possible.
Wood packaging material includes items such as dunnage, crates, fillets, spacers, pallets, drums, and reels. Peeler cores are exempt from the international standard ISPM 15, but are included in the New Zealand standard when used for packaging.
Packaging that is made from manufactured wood, such as plywood, oriented strand board, fibre-board, paper and cardboard packaging or those made from non-wood articles and thin wood (considered to be 6mm thickness or less) are exempt.
Wood packaging material such as sawdust, wood wool, and shavings, are regulated according to the Import Health Standard for Sawdust, Wood Chips, Wood Shavings, and Wood Wool from All Countries.
Wine barrels and animal crates used for the transportation of live animals are regulated by the
International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM’s) are adopted by contracting parties to the IPPC (International Plant Protection Convention) 
, and by FAO Members that are not contracting parties, through the Interim Commission on Phytosanitary Measures. ISPM’s are the standards, guidelines and recommendations recognized as the basis for phytosanitary measures applied by Members of the World Trade Organization under the Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures. ISPM 15 is the international guideline for regulating wood packaging material in international trade.
You can contact the National Programme Manager
Acceptable methods of treatment are available in Appendix 1 and Appendix 3 of the import health standard for wood packaging material.
Methyl bromide is an ozone depleting substance and its use is not encouraged when alternatives are available. Methyl bromide use as a quarantine treatment is exempt from the consumption controls under the Montreal Protocol. It is not known how long this exemption will remain in place.
Yes. These items are not regulated under the wood packaging standard, but regulated under the Import Health Standard for Woodware
The International Standard for Phytosanitary Measures No. 15: Guidelines for Regulating Wood Packaging in International Trade encourages countries to adopt similar import measures to reduce the incidence of unwanted exotic pests moving to new areas. Several countries have decided to adopt this International Standard as import measures and many other countries have given notice that they, too, intend to adopt the recommendations of ISPM 15
As an exporter, you will need to meet the importing country's requirements. Requirements for the export of certified wood packaging are provided in the export phytosanitary requirements for other countries.
Wood packaging returning to New Zealand must meet the requirements of the New Zealand import health standard as it could have been infested whilst offshore with exotic pests.
Yes it does change their role. Accredited persons should still be inspecting all wood packaging for pest such as insects and fungi but they must also record the ISPM 15 compliance status of the wood packaging on their container log sheets.
We recommend that non-compliant wood packaging be treated or destroyed.
It is anticipated that the requirements will be in place on 1 May 2006 but there will be a grace period for enforcement will be staged between May and June
Between 1 May and 30 June 2006:
- Consignments will be risk profiled and a subset of these will be selected for inspection.
- Any wood packaging found to have pests will be treated, reshipped or destroyed.
- Wood packaging that is non-compliant will be tagged with an advisory notice to the importer.
From 1 July 2006:
- Wood packaging must comply with the import requirements.
- Consignments will be risk profiled and a subset of these will be selected for inspection.
- Any non-compliant wood will be treated, reshipped or destroyed.
- A notice will be sent to the importer about any non-compliant wood packaging.
Information from the non-compliances will be used to feedback into the risk profiling system. This means that importers who develop a history of non-compliance will be selected for inspection more often.
- Consignments will be risk profiled and a subset of these will be selected for inspection.
- Consignment documentation will be checked on arrival if your consignment is selected by the risk profile.
- If the wood packaging is not accompanied by the proper certification or marked appropriately it will be considered untreated.
- Consignments that contain untreated wood packaging material will be treated, reshipped or destroyed.
- Consignments that contain treated wood packaging material may be inspected to verify that the treatment was effective.
- Consignments that contain treated wood packaging material declared as compliant may be inspected to verify that the wood is marked appropriately.
No. Wood packaging must be compliant with New Zealand's import requirements.
To provide sufficient time for countries to develop certification programs for wood packaging materials, New Zealand is implementing a staggered enforcement plan.
After 1 July 2006 if any untreated packaging is found it will be treated, re-shipped or destroyed. Costs for these actions will be borne by the importer.
Yes. If you have untreated wood packaging in your consignment after 1 July 2006 you will have to treat, reship or destroy it. The costs of this will be borne by the importer.