ISSUE 13 | MARCH 2015 · These controls are designed to prevent spread of the pest out of the area. ABOUT QUEENSLAND FRUIT FLY Queensland fruit fly is one of the most damaging fruit

ISSUE 13 | MARCH 2015

1. Bug Business March 2015 © The AgriChain Centre

IN THIS ISSUEWelcomeWelcome to our March 2015 issue of Bug Business, the Biosecurity best practice magazine, published quarterly by The AgriChain Centre since 2009. Providing an extensive range of industry support initiatives which provide our clients with clear and simple solutions to meet your Biosecurity compliance requirements.

• See, Contain, Report - Redback Spiders

• Meeting MPI Requirements

• Latest Biosecurity Pest Alert - Queensland Fruit Fly

• Transitional Facilities - The Importance Of Vigilance

• Change To Operator Numbers And Certificates

• Biosecurity Support Services Intiatives

HOW THE AGRICHAIN CENTRE CAN HELPProtecting New Zealand from unwanted pests and diseases is everyone's responsibility. As an importer operating a Biosecurity Transitional Facility, your company must also meet certain obligations under the Biosecurity Act.

The AgriChain Centre is New Zealand's leading provider of Biosecurity services to the Sea Freight Import Industry.

Our experienced team has extensive knowledge of Biosecurity and has developed practical and cost effective solutions to meet your business requirements.

WELLINGTON TRAINING VENUEAs from January 2015 we are holding our WELLINGTON Biosecurity Training courses at:

Fernhill Motor Lodge: 17-19 Pharazyn Street, Hutt City.

NEW SOUTH AUCKLAND TRAINING VENUEAs from 17 March 2015 we will be holding our SOUTH AUCKLAND Biosecurity Training and Chinese Biosecurity courses at a new venue:

Mount Richmond Hotel: The Vineyard Room, Level 2, 676 Mt Wellington Highway, Mt Wellington, Auckland (entrance to Mount Richmond Hotel is on New Brighton Road).

• NorthShore (Albany)

• SouthAuckland (Mt Wellington)

• WestAuckland(Henderson)

• Hamilton

• Tauranga

• Napier

• PalmerstonNorth

• Wellington

• Nelson

• Christchurch

• Dunedin

OUR TRAINING LOCATIONS

The AgriChain Centre is New Zealand’s most established provider of Biosecurity Training Programmes and offers a wide range of Biosecurity Compliance solutions for New Zealand businesses.

Approved by the Ministry for Primary Industries (formerly Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry – Biosecurity New Zealand) since 2004, we provide both Transitional Facility Operator (TFO) and Accredited Person (AP) training workshops nationally. Our competitive advantage for you is our commercial background.

* Classes will be run on-site nationwide for larger companies if required.

BOOK A COURSE ONLINE: www.agrichain-centre.com

Or call our Biosecurity Team on 0800 247 424 or email us: [email protected]

BIOSECURITY TRAINING

SEE, CONTAIN, REPORT

Bug Business March 2015 © The AgriChain Centre 2.

REDBACK SPIDERS

The redback spider (Latrodectus hasseltii) is a species of venomous spider indigenous to Australia. It is a member of the cosmopolitan genus Latrodectus, the widow spiders.

The adult female is easily recognised by her spherical black body with a prominent red stripe on the upper side of her abdomen and an hourglass-shaped red/orange streak on the underside. Females have a body length of about 10 millimetres (0.4 in), while the male is much smaller, being only 3–4 mm (0.12–0.16 in) long.

Mainly nocturnal, the female redback lives in an untidy web in a warm sheltered location, commonly near or inside human residences. It preys on insects, spiders and small vertebrates that become ensnared in its web. It kills its prey by injecting a complex venom through its two fangs when it bites, before wrapping them in silk and sucking out the liquefied insides.

Male spiders and spiderlings often live on the periphery of the female spiders' web and steal leftovers. Other species of spider and parasitoid wasps prey on this species. The redback is one of few arachnids which usually display sexual cannibalism while mating. The sperm is then stored in the spermathecae, organs of the female reproductive tract, and can be used up to two years later to fertilise several clutches of eggs.

Each clutch averages 250 eggs and is housed in a round white silken egg sac. The redback spider has a widespread distribution in Australia, and inadvertent introductions have led to established colonies in New Zealand, Japan, and in greenhouses in Belgium.

Female Spider

Contamination report statistics released by MPI in 2014 show that Spiders remain the most likely find by Transitional Facilities.

Please remain vigilant during container devanning and remember to SEE – CONTAIN – REPORT.

Call the MPI hotline on 0800 80 99 66 immediately to report live contamination.

FACTS: A recent news article (Feb 2015) indicated that a redback spider was found in grapes purchased from a supermarket in West Auckland. Read the full article here: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11405335

MPI also confirmed two other redback sightings in the past six months, a single specimen in the garden of a Rotorua resident in late January and another in an empty shipping container from Australia in Wellington last November. Both spiders were found alive.

Male Spider


MEETING MPI BIOSECURITY REQUIREMENTS

Requirements:

A Transitional Facility must have a prominent sign or signs identifying the area as a Transitional Facility under the Biosecurity Act.

Signs must warn that entry is restricted to permitted persons only. Signs are not permitted to display the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) logo or the acronym 'MPI' as their use is restricted by the Flags, Emblems, and Names Protection Act 1981.

We have a range of signage options available if you do not currently have the necessary signage: www.agrichain-centre.com/biosecurity/biosecurity-tfo-signage-and-kits/

1. TRANSITIONAL FACILITY SIGNAGE

2. BIOSECURITY EQUIPMENT

Requirements:

A Transitional Facility must provide the necessary equipment to check and clean containers, including: a broom, dustpan and brush, and a biosecurity bin to put quarantine waste in. This equipment must be solely used for the purposes of Biosecurity processes only.

How can we assist you?

Please visit our website for details of the full Biosecurity Kit we have available for purchase. www.agrichain-centre.com/biosecurity/ biosecurity-tfo-signage-and-kits/

Or Call The Team on 09 414 4536 or 0800 247 424 to discuss your options.

How to place an order?

Please complete our online Order Form and fax back to us on 09-414-6140 or email: [email protected]

In accordance with the Biosecurity Act and the Standard for General Transitional Facilities for Uncleared Goods (TFGEN) there are a number of requirements that Transitional Facility Operators need to be mindful of. In particular:

The Queensland fruit fly is a native of Australia where it is considered to be the country's most serious insect pest of fruit and vegetable crops. The species has also dispersed into Pacific countries such as New Caledonia via human activity.

AUCKLAND 2015

On 16 February 2015 a single male fruit fly was detected in an MPI surveillance trap in the Grey Lynn area of Auckland. Subsequently, on 20 February, a small isolated population of the fly was found in a home garden nearby in the same suburb.

This is the fourth time Queensland fruit fly has been found in northern New Zealand since 2012. In all previous cases a solitary fly was the only detection and no populations were found in the area.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has been taking urgent action to eradicate this Auckland fruit fly population and is confident of success given the resources and expertise at its disposal.

CONTROLS ON MOVEMENTS OF FRUIT AND VEGETABLES

Auckland residents with homes or businesses within the circular Controlled Area extending out 1.5km from the location of the finds are being asked not to move any whole fruit and certain vegetables out of the area.

These controls are designed to prevent spread of the pest out of the area.

ABOUT QUEENSLAND FRUIT FLY

Queensland fruit fly is one of the most damaging fruit fly pests as it infests more than 100 species of fruit and vegetables. Hosts include commercial crops such as avocado, citrus, feijoa, grape, peppers, persimmon, pipfruit, and stonefruit.

If this fly were to establish here, it would have serious consequences for New Zealand’s horticultural industry.

Some 7,500 MPI fruit fly traps are located throughout the North and South Islands.

WHY THIS IS SO IMPORTANT

Fruit flies lay their eggs inside ripening fruit. Their offspring grow in the fruit, feeding on the flesh and making the fruit inedible and unsuitable for sale. Many countries won’t buy our fruit and vegetables if we have an established population of fruit fly.

WHAT DO FRUIT FLIES LOOK LIKE?

They look like small house flies. The picture below indicates their size and appearance. The flies often seen buzzing around rotting fruit in fruit bowls are not generally fruit flies.

If you do think you’ve found fruit flies, note their location, catch a sample if you can, and call MPI on Freephone 0800 80 99 66.

Further information is at: www.mpi.govt.nz

(Source: The Ministry for Primary Industries).

QUEENSLAND FRUIT FLY

HOW YOU CAN HELP: Please report sightings of the above pests by ringing MPI on 0800 80 99 66


Legal Status: Notifiable OrganismStatus in New Zealand: Not in New ZealandOrganism: Insects, worms and other land invertebrates

LATEST BIOSECURITY PEST ALERT


The most recent outbreak of the Queensland Fruit Fly highlights the important part that Transitional Facilities play in ensuring that no additions are received with imported sea containers. Early detection of any contaminants, as well as following MPI instructions when any live contamination is found, is essential to maintaining the clean green status New Zealand has enjoyed for so many years.

The cost of outbreaks and eradication are not only expensive in terms of the dollar costs but also the damage to New Zealand’s reputation and the loss of revenue in relation to our primary industry exports.

MPI’s focus on ensuring that Transitional Facilities meet the Import Health Standards and operate to very high standards is therefore understandable and necessary. Facilities that do not meet MPI’s requirements are advised of the non-compliance(s) and given a Corrective Action Request (CAR) to rectify the issue(s).

TRANSITIONAL FACILITIES – THE IMPORTANCE OF VIGILANCE

As of the 1st of March 2015 there has been a change to how Operator training numbers and certificates are issued. MPI will no longer be issuing these certificates. The Training Provider is responsible for issuing a Certificate of Training to all attendees of Transitional Facility Operator workshops. These certificates are uniquely numbered including both letters and numbers which identify the training provider and certificate number; e.g. certificates issued by The AgriChain Centre will be in the format ACC00001, ACC00002, etc. When an operator retrains they will receive a new training certificate number. Note this number is not your Approved Operator Number.

The Certificate of Training provided by the Training Provider needs to be held on file for audit purposes. MPI will only issue an Operator Number when an individual applies to MPI to be the nominated Operator of the Approved Transitional Facility once approval has been granted.

Below is the process Operators will need to follow when applying to MPI:

Applying to be the New Approved Operator of a Transitional Facility

This includes first time applications to be an operator for a new ATF as well as existing operators applying to be an approved operator at a new or different facility.

• CompleteTFOtrainingandreceiveCertificateofTrainingissuedbytheTrainingProvider• ApplytoMPItobecometheapprovedOperatorofaTransitionalFacility• ApprovalgrantedbyMPI o Currently MPI will register them in Trade Single Window (TSW)• MPIwillissueaTransitionalFacilityapprovalcertificatewhichwillnowinclude: o Transitional Facility name and ATF code number o Operator name and MPI Operator number

Existing Approved Transitional Facility Operator

• RequiredtosendtheirCertificateofTrainingissuedbytheTrainingProvidertoMPIaftercompletionofrefreshertraining. Email to [email protected]

• MPIwillissueanewTransitionalFacilityapprovalcertificatewhichwillnowinclude: o Transitional Facility name and ATF code number o Operator name and MPI Operator number

There is no change to the Accredited Person certificate process. These will continue to be issued by MPI.

Should you have any questions regarding Operator training numbers and certificates please address these questions to The AgriChain Centre (09 414 4536 or [email protected]).

CHANGE TO OPERATOR NUMBERS AND CERTIFICATES


The AgriChain Centre LtdPO Box 101-245, NSMC, Auckland 0745, New Zealand. Telephone: +64-9-414-4536 or 0800-247-424. Facsimile: +64-9-414-6140. www.agrichain-centre.com

Dr Hans Maurer Publisher

Keith Budd Publication [email protected]

Lisa Ritchie Media [email protected]

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WHAT SETS US APART?

HELPFUL BIOSECURITY INFORMATION

We provide a links page on our website, pointing to all the relevant technical pages on the MPI Biosecurity website. Please visit our website to access it: www.agrichain-centre.com/biosecurity-nz-technical-information/

BIOSECURITY TRAINING PACKAGES:

We offer practical, easy and understandable MPI Biosecurity training nationwide. Please find below a range of training packages available at a preferential rate.

• Accredited Person Certificate (AP) & TransitionalFacility Operator Workshop (TFO) Combination package*

• OnsiteAccreditedPersonCertificateTraining**

• Price reduction for group bookings on our publiccourses

* Bookings must be made on the same day. Does not have to be the same person

**Minimum of 6 attendees required for onsite training.

Bug Business is The AgriChain Centre's own regular communication tool for Transitional Facilities. We aim to inform and assist in understanding how businesses can satisfy the Ministry for Primary Industries requirements in a sound and rational fashion.

Signup at: www.agrichain-centre.com/biosecurity-newsletter

Or update your details online at: www.agrichain-centre.com/update-your-details-online/

Documents

ISSUE 13 | MARCH 2015 · These controls are designed to prevent spread of the pest out of the area. ABOUT QUEENSLAND FRUIT FLY Queensland fruit fly is one of the most damaging fruit