Protected Zone Quarantine Pest Research Articles

The status of Scandosorbus and Hedlundia species as hosts for Erwinia amylovora

Summary Erwinia amylovora, the causal agent of fire blight disease, is regulated as a protected zone quarantine pest in Finland. To prevent the introduction of E. amylovora, all its host plants traded to Finland from other EU countries must have an official plant passport. Currently, plants from the genus Sorbus are considered hosts of E. amylovora under the existing regulation. However, recent reclassification of Sorbus has resulted in the establishment of new genera, including Scandosorbus and Hedlundia. This has led to uncertainty about whether these newly established genera should be regulated as hosts of E. amylovora. Consequently, the Risk Assessment Unit of the Finnish Food Authority was asked to assess the host status of Scandosorbus and Hedlundia species for E. amylovora. We based our assessent on a comprehensive literature review of species‐specific information on naturally occurring infections of E. amylovora in the genus Sorbus s.l., as well as experimental studies that have tested susceptibility under field or greenhouse conditions. The literature review revealed no evidence of natural infections by E. amylovora in any species belonging to the genera Hedlundia and Scandosorbus. While some experimental studies have demonstrated mild disease development in certain species belonging to these genera, the lack of further supporting evidence suggests that these species should not be considered as hosts of E. amylovora. However, our assessment was based on very limited available information, making the conclusions uncertain. For most species belonging to Hedlundia, there is no information available on their susceptibility. Given that resistance to fire blight can vary even among closely related taxa, it is possible that some species or cultivars belonging to Hedlundia, for which data is currently lacking, may be susceptible to E. amylovora. Further studies are needed to verify the host status of these species. Interestingly, we found evidence of natural infections of E. amylovora in Sorbus s.l. species that are now classified under the newly established genera Aria, Alniaria, Cormus, and Torminalis. The host status of these genera may need revision, as they potentially should be considered hosts in the Commission regulation regarding the trade of E. amylovora host plants.

Assessment of the potential area for the establishment of the Colorado potato beetle in Finland and Sweden

Summary The Colorado potato beetle (CPB, Leptinotarsa decemlineata) is a protected zone quarantine pest in the southern parts of Finland and Sweden. The units responsible for pest risk assessments in Finland and Sweden were requested to identify the geographical areas likely to be suitable for establishment of the CPB given a climate change scenario that covers the years 2023–2040. Based on previous studies, the northern limit of the potential range of the CPB appears to depend, above all, on where the summer temperatures enable the development of one complete generation. To identify such areas in Finland and Sweden, we first estimated the annual growing degree day (GDD) requirement (above 10 °C) of the CPB based on the two‐decade mean annual GDD in the northernmost locations where the CPB is present in Russia. The lowest mean annual GDD among these locations was 587 which was used as the GDD requirement of the CPB in this assessment. Next, we delineated the areas in Finland and Sweden where this GDD requirement was met in a recent time period (2003–2022) and in a future time period (2031–2050) assuming an intermediate greenhouse gas emission scenario, i.e., Representative Concentration Pathway (RCP) 4.5. The results show that the GDD requirement of 587 is met in large areas in southern Finland and Sweden, and by 2040, also in central Finland and the Baltic Sea coastline. We further assessed that there are enough hosts for the CPB to enable establishment in these areas. These areas were therefore assessed as likely to be suitable for the establishment of the CPB. Importantly, they include areas much further north than the current protected zones. This result was assessed to be rather robust since even a 20% higher GDD requirement (704) was met in a much larger area than the protected zones both in Sweden (in the recent and future climate) and in Finland (in the future climate). The greatest sources of uncertainty in the assessment are the uncertainty of the annual GDD that the CPB needs to complete its life cycle, the future climate projections, and the abundance of hosts necessary in a landscape to enable the CPB to establish.

Commodity risk assessment of plants of 12 selected Prunus species from Moldova.

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High-risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by defoliated 1- or 2-year old bare root plants for planting (grafted or not) of 12 Prunus species (Prunus armeniaca, P. avium, P. canescens, P. cerasifera, P. cerasus, P. davidiana, P. domestica, P. dulcis, P. fontanesiana, P. persica, P. salicina, P. tomentosa) imported from Moldova, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by the applicant country. The evaluation identified three EU-quarantine pests, Erwinia amylovora (protected zone quarantine pest), Xiphinema rivesi non-EU populations and Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni (protected zone quarantine pest), which were selected for further evaluation, based on defined criteria, including their presence in the applicant country. It should be noted that there is uncertainty regarding whether all relevant pests have been identified due to a limited number of scientific publications and pest surveys in Moldova. For the three selected pests, the risk mitigation measures proposed in the technical dossier from Moldova were evaluated taking into account the possible limiting factors. For these pests, an expert judgement is given on the likelihood of pest freedom taking into consideration the risk mitigation measures acting on it, including uncertainties associated with the assessment. The degree of pest freedom varies among the pests evaluated, with Erwinia amylovora being the pest most frequently expected on the imported plants. The Expert Knowledge Elicitation indicated, with 95% certainty, that between 9823 and 10,000 bundles (comprising 10-20 plants per bundle) out of 10,000 bundles would be free from E. amylovora.

Commodity risk assessment of Malus domestica plants from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High-risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by bare root plants of Malus domestica grafted on rootstocks of either Malus domestica or Malus sylvestris imported from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BIH), taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by Bosnia and Herzegovina. All pests associated with the commodities were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion. One protected zone quarantine pest, Erwinia amylovora, fulfilled all relevant criteria and was selected for further evaluation. For E. amylovora, special requirements are specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Based on the information provided in the Dossier, these specific requirements for E. amylovora are not met.

Commodity risk assessment of Malus sylvestris plants from United Kingdom

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by rooted plants and bundles of bare root plants or rooted cell grown young plants of Malus sylvestris imported from the UK, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by the UK. All pests associated with the commodities were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion. Two quarantine pests (tobacco ringspot virus and tomato ringspot virus), one protected zone quarantine pest (Erwinia amylovora) and four non-regulated pests (Colletotrichum aenigma, Meloidogyne mali, Eulecanium excrescens and Takahashia japonica) that fulfilled all relevant criteria were selected for further evaluation. For Erwinia amylovora, special requirements are specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Based on the information provided in the dossier, these specific requirements for E. amylovora are met. For the remaining six pests, the risk mitigation measures proposed in the technical Dossier from the UK were evaluated, taking into account the possible limiting factors. For these pests, expert judgement is given on the likelihood of pest freedom, taking into consideration the risk mitigation measures acting on the pest, including uncertainties associated with the assessment. The degree of pest freedom varies among the pests evaluated, with scales (Eulecanium excrescens and Takahashia japonica) being the pests most frequently expected on the imported bundles of bare root plants or rooted cell grown young plants. The expert knowledge elicitation indicated with 95% certainty that between 9,976 and 10,000 bundles (one bundle consisting of 5-15 plants for bare root plants or 25-50 plants for cell grown young plants) per 10,000 would be free from the above-mentioned scales.

Commodity risk assessment of Malus domestica plants from United Kingdom.

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by rooted plants in pots, bundles of bare-rooted plants or trees and bundles of budwood and graftwood of Malus domestica imported from the United Kingdom, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by the United Kingdom. All pests associated with the commodities were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion. Two quarantine pests (tobacco ringspot virus and tomato ringspot virus), one protected zone quarantine pest (Erwinia amylovora) and four non-regulated pests (Colletotrichum aenigma, Meloidogyne mali, Eulecanium excrescens, Takahashia japonica) that fulfilled all relevant criteria were selected for further evaluation. For E. amylovora, special requirements are specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Based on the information provided in the Dossier, the specific requirements for E. amylovora were met. For the remaining six pests, the risk mitigation measures proposed in the technical Dossier from the UK were evaluated considering the possible limiting factors. For the selected pests, expert judgement is given on the likelihood of pest freedom, taking into consideration the risk mitigation measures acting on the pest, including uncertainties associated with the assessment. The degree of pest freedom varies among the pests evaluated, with scales (E. excrescens and T. japonica) being the pests most frequently expected on the imported budwood and graftwood. The Expert Knowledge Elicitation indicated with 95% certainty that between 9,976 and 10,000 bundles (consisting of 50 up to 500 plants each) per 10,000 would be free from the above-mentioned scales.

Commodity risk assessment of Malus domestica plants from Turkey.

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as ‘High risk plants, plant products and other objects’. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by dormant grafted plants, rootstocks, budwood and scions of Malus domestica imported from Turkey, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by Turkey. All pests associated with the commodities were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion. Three quarantine pests (Anoplophora chinensis, Lopholeucaspis japonica and tomato ringspot virus), one protected zone quarantine pest (Erwinia amylovora) and eight non‐regulated pests (Calepitrimerus baileyi, Cenopalpus irani, Cicadatra persica, Diplodia bulgarica, Hoplolaimus galeatus, Malacosoma parallela, Pratylenchus loosi and Pyrolachnus pyri) that fulfilled all relevant criteria were selected for further evaluation. For E. amylovora, special requirements are specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072. Based on the information provided in the dossier, the specific requirements for E. amylovora were not met. For Anoplophora chinensis, special measures are specified in Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2012/138. The exporting country does meet the requirement for a certificate regarding plants for planting that originate from Turkish provinces other than Istanbul. For the 10 remaining selected pests, the risk mitigation measures proposed in the technical dossier from Turkey were evaluated taking into account the possible limiting factors. For the selected pests an expert judgement is given on the likelihood of pest freedom taking into consideration the risk mitigation measures acting on the pest, including uncertainties associated with the assessment. The degree of pest freedom varies among the pests evaluated, with D. bulgarica being the pest most frequently expected on the imported plants. The expert knowledge elicitation indicated with 95% certainty that between 9,863 and 10,000 bundles (consisting of 10 or 25 plants each) per 10,000 would be free from D. bulgarica.

Commodity risk assessment of Malus domestica plants from Ukraine.

The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as ‘High risk plants, plant products and other objects’). This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by 1‐ to 3‐year‐old dormant grafted plants and rootstocks of Malus domestica imported from Ukraine, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by Ukraine. All pests associated with the commodity were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion. Two quarantine pests (Lopholeucaspis japonica and Tobacco ringspot virus), one protected zone quarantine pest (Erwinia amylovora) and one non‐regulated pest (Eotetranychus prunicola) that fulfilled all relevant criteria were selected for further evaluation. For Erwinia amylovora, for which special requirements are specified in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072, Annex X, item 9, the fulfilment of these requirements was evaluated. Based on the information provided in the dossier, the specific requirements for Erwinia amylovora were not met. For the three remaining selected pests, the risk mitigation measures proposed in the technical dossier from Ukraine were evaluated taking into account the possible limiting factors. For the selected pests, an expert judgement is given on the likelihood of pest freedom taking into consideration the risk mitigation measures acting on the pest, including uncertainties associated with the assessment. The degree of pest freedom varies among the pests evaluated, with Eotetranychus prunicola being the pest most frequently expected on the imported plants. The Expert Knowledge Elicitation indicated with 95% certainty that between 9,912 and 10,000 bundles (consisting of 50 plants each) per 10,000 would be free from Eotetranychus prunicola.