Biosecurity Australia has revised restrictions on New Zealand tomato and capsicum imports, allowing them back into the market after a bacteria scare cut them off in January.
The New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) said the Australian ban was the last on tomatoes and capsicums to be lifted, following Japan and Fiji who had also blocked access.
A potato disease called ‘zebra chip’ was found in three Auckland commercial hothouses in January, affecting exports of potatoes, tomatoes, capsicums and tamarillos.
New Zealand’s tomato exports are worth NZ$7.3m a year, and capsicum exports NZ$34m.
Renewed access to the market was about two months later than growers wanted, reported the New Zealand Herald, who needed to plant their summer crops in October.
The new quarantine measures “are tighter than would have been preferred”, according to MAF plant exports team manager Karen Sparrow.
They require clearance by Australian inspectors in New Zealand, exports only from registered hothouses, methyl bromide fumigation, spot spraying if psyllid insects are found and phytosanitary certification by MAF.
