The commencement of this analysis was in response to a request for market access for fresh strawberries from the Republic of Korea (Korea) into Australia. Korea advised Australia in September 2014 that its highest priority request for horticultural market access was for fresh strawberries.
Australia has existing import policy for strawberries from New Zealand and the United States of America (California). A preliminary pest categorisation for strawberries from Korea has been undertaken and the potential quarantine pests of concern identified are the same as, or similar to, quarantine pests of strawberries from California and New Zealand for which existing import conditions exist.
Given the similarity of pests of concern and that there are appropriate risk management measures for these pests, the risk analysis for strawberries from Korea was progressed as a non-regulated analysis of existing policy, consistent with the Import Risk Analysis Handbook 2011 (the Handbook).
The Handbook sets out specific criteria that need to be met for an Import Risk Analysis (IRA) to be conducted. These criteria are:
- relevant risk management measures have not been established; or
- relevant risk management measures for a similar good and pest/disease combination do exist, but the likelihood and/or consequences of entry, establishment or spread of pests or diseases could differ significantly from those previously assessed.
In this case, strawberries from Korea did not meet the above criteria. However, the risk analysis process will be applied to this review, using the best available scientific information.
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Strawberry industry in Korea
Strawberry production in Korea is concentrated around greenhouse production with 97% of production in 2014 grown in glasshouses. The remaining 3% is produced in open field production sites.
The major strawberry growing regions in Korea are in Gyeongsangnam-do (accounting for 34% of total production) and Chungcheongnam-do (32%), followed by Jeollanam-do (10%) and Jeollabuk-do (9%).
Korea has indicated that its strawberry peak season is January to March and the major variety for export is Maehyang, which was developed in Korea.
The current key markets for Korean strawberries are Singapore and Hong Kong, which are non-protocol markets (that is, there are no phytosanitary requirements). Korea recently gained market access to two protocol markets, Canada and Vietnam. Import conditions required by Canada and Vietnam do not include any mandatory phytosanitary treatment.
Australian strawberry imports
Australia currently permits the import of fresh strawberry fruit from New Zealand and the USA (California) for human consumption, as well as strawberry nursery stock (tissue culture) for propagation purposes.
The New Zealand export season to Australia is from August to December, and the USA from January to June. Strawberries have been exported to Australia from these two countries for over 20 years.
Import volumes from both these countries in recent years have been small and largely opportunistic.
2012 | 2013 | 2014 | |
|---|---|---|---|
New Zealand | 35 | 22 | 23 |
USA | 0 | 2.6 | 0 |
Strawberry industry in Australia
Strawberries are produced in all Australian states, with Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia being the major producing states. In 2011, Australia produced around 72,500 tonnes of strawberries worth around $400 million.
Most Australian strawberries are currently grown in open fields, with only a small proportion grown in glasshouses or hydroponically.
Varieties grown in Australia are mostly introduced, and are predominantly sourced from the USA. A few varieties are developed locally and are increasing in industry acceptance.
Australian strawberry growers export approximately 2% of their total domestic production volume. The majority of strawberry exports come from Western Australia, with a smaller export volume from eastern states. Australian exports are mostly destined for markets in Asia with the larger export volumes traded with Singapore, Thailand, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Malaysia. In its industry strategic plan (2009-2013) the strawberry industry notes that it is largely focused on domestic fresh fruit marketing, however exports do occur on a largely opportunistic basis.
Exports increased from 3000 tonnes in 2015 (worth approximately $24.5 million) to nearly 4000 tonnes in 2016 (excluding December, worth approximately $32.7 million).
Trade between Australia and Korea
In 2015-16, the total value of Australia’s agricultural exports to Korea was $2.9 billion. The main exports were beef and veal, wheat, sugar and wool. Other exports include offal, dairy, wine and horticulture products such as mangoes, table grapes, citrus and cherries from Tasmania.
Preliminary assessment of Korean strawberries
A preliminary assessment of the pests associated with Korean strawberries indicates that potential arthropod pests or pest groups of quarantine concern are: spotted wing drosophila, mealybugs, leafrollers, tussock moths and thrips.
Potential pathogens of quarantine concern are those causing angular leaf spot (Xanthomonas fragariae), brown rot (Monilinia fructigena) and Asiatic brown rot (Monilinia polystroma).
Next steps
The recommendations in the final report are an administrative step and reflect the completion of the risk analysis for fresh strawberry fruit from the Republic of Korea. There are a number of other steps to be completed before imports can commence:
- The department will verify that Korea can action the recommended risk management measures. In particular, Korea is yet to propose risk management measures, with supporting information to demonstrate the efficacy, for a pathogen causing angular leaf spot for review by the department.
- Import conditions will be published on the department’s Biosecurity Import Conditions System (BICON). Interested stakeholders can register in the BICON system and receive an alert when the case is updated.
- Import permits would need to be issued for trade to commence. A decision to import fresh strawberry fruit from the Republic of Korea into Australia is a commercial decision between an importer in Australia and a supplier in Korea who can meet the import conditions.
The final report can be viewed on the department's website.