Further controls to prevent the importation of olive tree diseases

The Department of Plant Health within the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has an ongoing scheme whereby the Department is producing grafted olive trees, that are certified as being virus and disease free. To complement the benefits of such a scheme, the Department is now enforcing the following controls and measures on the importation of olive trees. The aim of these measures is to ensure that only healthy and certified trees are added to the local olive tree population.

The measures are as follows -

1. All imported olive treeseedlings are to be certified as emanating from a recognised Certification Scheme, as is currently the practice.
2. Grown trees up to the age of five years, are to be certified as either originating from such a Certification Scheme, or otherwise be accompanied by a Phytosanitary Certificate having the following additional declaration issued by a recognised authority:

"The rootstock and scion have been tested for and are free from the following organisms:

Viruses: Arabis Mosiac Virus (ArMV); Strawberry latent ringspot nepovirus (SLRSV); Olive latent ringspot nepovirus (OLRSV); Cucumber Mosiac virus (CMV); Cherry leaf roll nepovirus (CLRV); Olive latent 1 sobemovirus (OLV-1); Olive latent 2 ourmiavirus (OLV-2).

Fungi: Verticillium dhaliae

Bacteria: Pseudomonas savastanoi"

3. Trees over the age of five years can be imported with a normal Phytosanitary Certificate provided that the importer produces a written declaration, indicating that the intended place of planting is at least three kilometers from the nearest productive olive site.