Changes

As notified on 23 August 2021 , new import conditions have been applied to high-risk plant products to reduce the risk of khapra beetle entering Australia. The new import conditions apply to:

• high-risk plant products exported on or after 30 September 2021
• consignments arriving as air freight and sea freight, including LCL (Less than Container Load) and FCL (Full Container Load) containers.

High-risk plant products exported from a khapra beetle target-risk country:
High-risk plant products exported from khapra beetle target risk countries via sea and air freight must now be treated offshore with an approved treatment option and inspected by a government official of the exporting country.

Approved treatment options are heat treatment, methyl bromide fumigation and controlled atmosphere treatment. The goods must be treated within 21 days of export and accompanied by valid treatment certification.

In addition to a treatment certificate, the goods must also be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate certifying the treatment requirements have been met and that the goods are free from all live species of Trogoderma.

Note: To import goods treated offshore by a controlled atmosphere treatment, a valid import permit is required. The goods must have an import permit before they arrive in Australia.

High-risk plant products exported from all other countries:
High-risk plant products exported from all other countries via sea and air freight must be inspected by a government official of the exporting country and certified as free from evidence of any species of Trogoderma that are of biosecurity concern to Australia

Managing high-risk plant products that do not comply with the new import conditions:
High-risk plant products that have not been treated by an approved method or inspected offshore pose an unacceptable level of biosecurity risk as they are more likely to arrive infested with pest species of Trogoderma including khapra beetle.

If a biosecurity officer suspects, on reasonable grounds, that the level of biosecurity risk associated with the goods is unacceptable, a biosecurity officer may direct the goods (and the container) to be exported.

Who does this notice affect:
Importers of high-risk plant products and other stakeholders in the import and shipping sectors.

Background:
The department is strengthening the import conditions for commodities that are hosts of khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium). Khapra beetle is a national priority pest for Australia. It is a serious pest of a wide range of stored plant products including grains and has potential to cause significant economic consequences to Australia.

Further information:
For further information, see:

• urgent actions to protect against khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium)
• sea container measures to protect against khapra beetle (Trogoderma granarium)
• khapra beetle bulletin

For:

• questions and information related directly to offshore khapra beetle treatments, please email offshoretreatments@agriculture.gov.au
• all other enquiries regarding these changes, please phone 1800 900 090 or email imports@agriculture.gov.au (please title the subject line of the email with ‘Plant Tier 2 – khapra urgent actions’).