Office of the Director-General
Reference: 08/17333
5 SEP 2008
Ms Louise van Meurs
General Manager
Plant Biosecurity
Biosecurity Australia
GPO Box 858
Canberra ACT 2601
Dear Ms van Meurs
Biosecurity Australia Advice 2008/20 - Issues paper for the the import risk analysis for fresh apple fruit from the United States of America
I refer to the Issues paper for the import risk analysis for fresh apple fruit from the United States of America and your request for comments by 5 September 2008
The issues paper provides information relevant to the import request and the import risk analysis and includes a list of pests associated with apple production in the United States of America.
The Department of Primary Industries and Fisheries (DPI&F) has reviewed the issues paper and notes that Biosecurity Australia has identified fire blight, caused by the bacterium Erwinia amylovora, as a significant disease affecting apple fruit, particularly as Australia is free of fire blight. This is a major concern for the Queensland porno fruits industry and, although the DPI&F has no further comment at this stage, it is committed to active involvement in this extended import risk analysis process.
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the issues paper.
If you require any further information regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact Dr Fiona Giblin on telephone 07 3239 3472 or email fiona.giblin@dpi.qld.gov.au
Yours sincerely
[Signed]
Robert Setter
Director-General (Acting)
Profitable primary
Industries for Queensland
Maximise the economic
potential of Queensland
primary industries on a
sustainable basis
Floor 8
Primary Industries Building
30 Ann Street Brisbane
GPO Box 46 Brisbane
Queensland 4001 Australia
Business Centre 13 25 23
Website www.dpi.qld.gov.au
ABN 78 342 684 030
Disclaimer: The department received this submission in hardcopy only, which has been converted into an accessible format to meet Australian Government accessibility requirements. While due care was taken to ensure the information was reproduced accurately, the PDF should be considered the original document for official purposes.