Emerging phytosanitary issues in the EU & the likely Russian market response

Sylvie MamiasUNION FLEURS Secretary General

Conference: INTERNATIONAL FLOWER INDUSTRY FOCUSES ON SUSTAINABILITY FOR GROWTH

6 June 2013 - IFTEX , Nairobi, Kenya

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on major markets

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Emerging phytosanitary issues in the EU:

Does it have anything to do with ‘sustainability for growth’ ?

YES!Appropriate ANTICIPATION, PREVENTION and MANAGEMENT of phytosanitary issues at the earliest stage and along the whole supply chain:

• help limit the impact on companies of extra costs for rejection at EU borders and of unnecessary administrative burden• enable optimisation of the costs linked to achieving compliancewith the requirements of the EU phytosanitary regulations •ensure a stable access to export markets in the long-term and contribute to sustainable market growth under level-playing field conditions

Phytosanitary issues should therefore be fully integrated in the RISK MANAGEMENT STRATEGY of individual companies and of the global supply chain.

The need for responsible and duly diligent operators in tackling phytosanitary issues is vital for the industry but a COLLECTIVE EFFORT is also required to maximise opportunities, actively involving as well the authorities at origin and national organisations.

The efficient management of phytosanitary issues at origin is evaluated and rewarded by the EU at COUNTRY-LEVEL, not individual operators.

THE EU PLANT HEALTH REGIME

Current rules applying to imports of plants & plant products into the EU

Upcoming review of the EU regulatory framework

EUROPHYT notifications: focus on Kenya performance

The EU Plant Health regime

OBJECTIVES:

• Regulate the trade of plants and plant products within the EU as well as imports from non-EU countries, in accordance with international plant health standards and obligations

• In order to prevent the introduction and spread of harmful organisms into the EU territory

BASIC PRINCIPLES APPLYING TO IMPORTS FROM NON-EU COUNTRIES:

100% imported consignments must be checked at the EU borders

they must be accompanied by a Phytosanitary certificate issued by the NPPO of the exporting country

Plant health checks must be carried out prior to customs clearance (documentary, identity and plant health inspections)

A RISK-BASED APPROACH:

Reduced levels of checks are allowed to be applied to safe products from safe origins

e.g.: Roses from Kenya : 5% checks Carnations from Kenya: 5% checks

in order to enable plant health inspections services to concentrate their workload on unsafe products from unsafe origins

The EU Plant Health regime

NEED FOR REFORM & MODERNISATION:

• System in place since 1977 without any review

• New challenges: With the increase and globalisation of trade in plant products over the last decades and the effects of climate change, the risk of introducing new pests and diseases has increased.

• Objective: as far as import of plants from non-EU countries are concerned, the EU should focus its resources on:

prevention a reinforced risk-based approach

Review of the EU Plant Health regime

Directive 2000/29/EC

EU Regulation on Plant Health

EU Regulation on Official Controls

Current legislation

Future legislation

•Imports from third countries into the EU•Intra-EU trade•Export from the EU to third countries

FUTURE EU Regulation on Plant Health

Main elements of the proposed review :

General:•Clarified definitions, e.g. plants, plants for planting, competent authority, operator, etc.•Official register of operators•Clarification of operators’ responsibilities

Imports into the EU:•Stronger recognition of origin countries with equivalent phytosanitary measures•Introduction of temporary measures concerning risks posed by NEW plants for planting (quarantine)

Review of the EU Plant Health regime

Main objectives of the review:

• Strike a balance between the need to protect the EU territory against the risks of plant pests and the need to minimize potential distortive effects on the trade;

• Favor a risk-based approach and risk-targeted measures;

• Promote prevention strategies to tackle phytosanitary issues at the earliest possible stage and avoid devastating outbreaks;

• Implement proportionate and uniform phytosanitary rules across the EU to ensure level-playing field conditions for operators.

FUTURE EU Regulation on Official Controls

Review of the EU Plant Health regime

Specific challenges for floricultural products:highly perishable non-food productsneed for quick and flexible procedures

FUTURE EU Regulation on Official Controls

Main elements of the upcoming proposal:

• Transparency in the Official Control results

• Cost - based mandatory fees and charges

• Border Control Posts (BCPs) will replace previous points of entry

• Right of operators for a supplementary opinion: document review, second analysis/test

• A Common Health Entry Document (CHED) – fully electronic

• Description of specific actions to be taken by authorities in case of suspicion and in case of non-compliant consignments

Review of the EU Plant Health regime

Main objectives of the review:

• Strike a balance between the need to protect the EU territory against the risks of plant pests and the need to minimize potential distortive effects on the trade;

• Favor a risk-based approach and risk-targeted measures;

• Promote prevention strategies to tackle phytosanitary issues at the earliest possible stage and avoid devastating outbreaks;

• Implement proportionate and uniform phytosanitary rules across the EU to ensure level-playing field conditions for operators.

TIMING: May 2013 : Publication of the proposals

The proposals will soon be submitted to the European Parliament and the

Council for the EU for discussion and adoption (could be a lengthy process)

By 2018: Implementation of the reviewed EU Plant Health regime (timing is

approximate)

Review of the EU Plant Health regime

EUROPHYT notifications

EUROPHYT: European Network of Plant Health Information Systems

EUROPHYT facilitates exchange of official information between plant health services of EU Member States (including Switzerland), the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Commission

EUROPHYT database provides an overview of reported interceptions for plants or plant products that do not comply with EU legislation

EUROPHYT provides an essential support for the implementation of preventative measures by ensuring that the data on risks to plant health from trade in plants and plant products is up-to-date and accurate.

EUROPHYT notifications

EUROPHYT notifications

FOCUS ON KENYA PERFORMANCE

FOCUS ON KENYA PERFORMANCE

FOCUS ON KENYA PERFORMANCE

RUSSIA

RUSSIA

• Huge market growth in terms of cut flowers and pot plants imports over the last 10 years

• Russia has joined the WTO in 2012 but remains a difficult trade partner

• Should be bound by international regulations, including in the SPS area, but actually uses them as its advantage

• Since March 2013, Russia is threatening to introduce an import ban against EU pot plants due to phytosanitary issues – now postponed 3 times – as long as it does not obtain access to the EU market for its Siberian pines (newly promoted ‘negative retroactivity concept’)

• Very difficult to plan on stable market access conditions in the long –term. Political games and power play, not just with the EU.

Thank you for your attention!

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