Alerts

Additional measures for bean thrips proposed for navel oranges and mandarins from the USA

The Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (the department) has notified the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that it has imposed a threshold limit for bean thrips (Caliothrips fasciatus) interceptions on consignments of citrus from the US for the 2015-16 season.  The threshold limit has been set at 15 intercepts for bean thrips detected during department inspection (on-arrival or off-shore).  Should this threshold be reached, mandatory off-shore fumigation with methyl bromide or equivalent measures will be required in order to manage this biosecurity risk.

The requirement for citrus from the US to be free of bean thrips has been in place since trade commenced.  Increasingly high numbers of interceptions of this pest pose an unnecessarily high level of threat to our citrus industry and the decision to impose a threshold trigger for treatment is intended to ensure every effort is made to reduce the approach rate for this pest and protect Australian industries.

The department is working with the USDA to identify any equivalent alternatives to methyl bromide fumigation that could be accepted to manage this pest.

Should the threshold be reached, importers will be notified as to what further measures will apply. The department will implement a transition period of several weeks to enable industry to adapt to the new conditions.

Previous interception data shows that this pest is largely restricted to navel oranges and mandarins so these measures will not affect other varieties of citrus.