01 May 2023
Purpose
This Industry Advice Notice (IAN) is to advise industry that applications for the export of bananas, capsicum, papaya and sweetcorn to New Zealand for the 2023-24 season are now open.
Summary of changes and key points
- Applications are now open for farm and packhouse accreditation to export bananas, capsicum, papaya and sweetcorn, as listed in the New Zealand Export Plan (Export Plan), for the purpose of conducting and maintaining in-field controls for certain pests.
NOTE: Accreditation of farms and packhouses may not be required if exporting under certain treatment pathways. Refer to the accreditation and registration requirements for your commodity to determine your accreditation requirements as per the Export Plan. Farms and packhouses wanting to export to New Zealand (NZ), who are required to be an accredited property under the Export plan, can download and complete the relevant applications below and forward to the Audit and Assurance Branch.
- Application for plant export accreditation of farms
- Application for plant export accreditation of packhouses
NOTE: All information in the application (for example, ABN numbers, contact details, accredited property maps and addresses) must be complete and correct or the application may not be accepted.- Farms and packhouses must be available for audit at the frequency outlined in the table in section 12 of the Export Plan.
- New applicants must pass an audit prior to accreditation.
- Existing accredited properties must submit a new application prior to the expiry of their current accreditation.
- All other requirements in the Export Plan must be adhered to.
- For further information, please see the Export Plan located in the ‘Documents’ section of Micor.
- Crop monitor training and assessment for these commodities is available through Learnhub.
- Treatment facilities that are not already a registered establishment, wanting to apply for fumigation with Methyl Bromide must download and complete the Application forms for registration as a plant export registered establishment and/or associated operations and functions (EX26a and EX26d) and forward to the Certificate Management Group.
NOTE: Treatment options for each specific commodity, are listed in section 13 of the Export Plan.
Background
New Zealand has specific requirements for importing Australian produce.
The Export Plan mandates when farms and packhouses must be accredited, and when treatment facilities must be registered with us.
For specific market requirements, refer to the Export Plan in the ‘Documents’ section of the Manual of Importing Country Requirements (Micor). To access this document, you must be a registered Micor Plant user.
To register for Micor, go to the registration webpage, complete all fields and then click ‘Submit’. You will be provided with your login details by email.
Accredited property responsibilities – farms and packhouses
- Farms and packhouses must apply for accreditation annually (unless otherwise advised).
- Growers may divide their farm into blocks. Each block must be clearly identified on the application form and on the farm map by its physical address or geographic co-ordinates.
NOTE: Further detail on map and block requirements can be found on the application forms and in the Guideline: Management of horticulture export accredited properties on the Plant Export Operations Manual. - Packhouses must submit a separate application for each packhouse facility.
- All applicants, including existing accredited properties, must be available for audits, to ensure compliance with the Export Plan.
- New farms and packhouses must pass an audit prior to accreditation.
- Our audit team will contact applicable farms and packhouses to arrange these audits. In-season audits will be determined and communicated during the season.
- We can only accredit an entity for export if all protocol requirements are met.
- Requirements for accredited properties, to assist in preparing for audit, including management guidelines, audit guidelines and performance standards can be found on the Plant Export Operations Manual.
Crop monitor responsibilities
- Only crop monitors who have completed the online training and passed the assessment are eligible to conduct crop monitoring for protocol markets.
- Online crop monitor training is now open.
- We are currently working on releasing new crop monitoring modules to better support crop monitors.
- If you are completing the training and assessment prior to Sunday 25 June 2023, please complete the training via the existing Tocal College online eLearning hub.
- If you are commencing training and assessment on or after Monday 26 June 2023, you will need to complete this in LearnHub. Refer to IAN 2023-34 Horticulture – Changes to access crop monitor training for protocol markets for more information.
- The training must be completed before crop monitoring begins.
- Crop monitors will be audited for compliance at the relevant accredited property audit.
- The eLearning course content will remain accessible for crop monitors to refer to for information throughout the season.
Treatment facility responsibilities
Treatment facilities must be a registered establishment and approved for the specific country, commodity and treatment combination for protocol markets.
Treatment facilities that are currently not approved for the countries, commodities and treatments they would like, must submit an Application for registration as a plant export registered establishment and/or approve a proposed arrangement (EX26a) and an Application for registration as a plant export registered establishment and/or associated operations and functions (EX26d) to the Certificate Management Group.
Treatment facilities that are currently approved, but wish to vary any plant operation, or make changes to your documented systems must submit an Application for registration as a plant export registered establishment and/or associated operations and functions (EX26d) and an Application to vary an establishment registration (EX26b) to the Certificate Management Group.
Contact information
If you have any questions regarding this IAN, please email the Horticulture Exports Program.
Rosanna Carr
Acting Assistant Secretary
Plant Export Operations Branch