71st EPPO Council Session

Teleconference, 2021-09-28/29

 

 

The 71st Session of EPPO Council took place by teleconference on the 28th and 29th of September 2021. It was preceded by meetings of the Accounts Verification Panel and the Executive Committee, and followed by the Euphresco Governing Board. Ms Karola Schorn (Chair) welcomed delegates from 36 EPPO member countries and observers from the European Commission. Due to the pandemic situation, it was not possible to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of EPPO, but the Organization was offered by Mr van Herzele (Belgium delegate) a commemorative 2 euro coin dedicated to the International Year of Plant Health.

 

Council members were updated on the technical work being carried out by EPPO Panels under the guidance of the Working Party on Phytosanitary Regulations and the Working Party on Plant Protection Products. They also received reports on a number of current and future projects such as the Minor Uses Co-ordination Facility (MUCF), EPPO-Q-bank database, revision of EPPO datasheets, EPPO Codes, research projects (XF-actors, Valitest).

 

A number of new and revised EPPO Standards were adopted (see below), and five pests were added to the EPPO A1 and A2 Lists of pests recommended for regulation as quarantine pests.

 

The participation of EPPO in global activities was discussed and the newly adopted ISPMs were presented to the Council for information. Feed-back was also given on the activities which took place during the International Year of Plant Health.

 

Council accepted the annual report for 2020, as well as the budget and work programme for 2022.

 

Concerning statutory elections, as Ms Karola Schorn (Chair) and Mr Andrii Chelombitko (Vice Chair) reached the end of their terms of service, Mr Michael Kurzweil and Mr Sultan Sultanov were elected Chairman and Vice Chairman, respectively.

 

As Sweden and Kazakhstan were reaching the end of their normal term of office on the EPPO Executive Committee and Uzbekistan needed a replacement (due to the fact that Mr Sultanov was elected Vice Chairman), Cyprus, the United Kindgom and Slovakia were elected to serve in their place from January 2022. Belgium, Ireland, and Moldova will continue to serve on the Executive Committee. For the Accounts Verification Panel, Serbia agreed to replace Azerbaijan and Georgia was elected as alternate.

 

Council delegates and the EPPO Secretariat expressed their warm thanks to Ms Karola Schorn and Mr Andrii Chelombitko for their excellent service during these last years. It was also the opportunity to wish Mr Ralf Lopian (Finland delegate) and Ms Madène (EPPO Secretariat) a happy retirement.

 

Ms Karola Schorn (Chair) closed the meeting and thanked all delegates and observers for their participation. The next session of EPPO Council will take place on the 27th and 28th of September 2022 in Azerbaijan, if the pandemic situation allows it.

 

 

 

Standards approved by EPPO Council in 2021-09

 

Standards will be published in due course in the EPPO Bulletin. They will also be accessible from this website and stored in the EPPO Global Database.

 

EPPO Standards PM 1 - General Phytosanitary Measures

Additions to the A1 List (pests absent from the EPPO region)

- Chrysobothris femorata

- Chrysobothris mali

- Orgyia leucostigma 

Additions to the A2 List (pests locally present in the EPPO region)

- Celastrus orbiculatus

- Xanthomonas citri pv. fuscans  [following changes in taxonomy]

Transfers from A1 List to A2 List

- Anoplophora glabripennis

- Aromia bungii

- Spodoptera frugiperda

Transfer from A2 List to A1 List

- Blueberry leaf mottle virus (BLMoV) [following changes in taxonomy]

Deletion from the A1 List 

- Citrus tatter leaf virus (CTLV) [following changes in taxonomy]

 

 

EPPO Standards PM 3 - Phytosanitary procedures

  • Consignment inspection of fresh fruit and vegetables for fruit flies – NEW
  • Trees of Malus, Pyrus, Cydonia and Prunus spp. – inspection of places of production (revision of PM 3/76)
  • Consignment inspection of seed and grain of cereals (revision of PM 3/78)
  • Consignment inspection of seed of Solanum lycopersicum (revision of PM 3/80)
  • Testing of potato varieties to assess resistance to Globodera rostochiensis and Globodera pallida (revision of PM 3/68)
  • Management of phytosanitary risks for potato crops resulting from movement of soil associated with root crops and potatoes (new)

 

Withdrawal of: 

Tomato ringspot nepovirus in fruit trees and grapevine - Inspection methods (PM 3/32, as a consequence of PM 3/76 and PM 3/85 being updated)

Other viruses of Malus and Prunus - Inspection and test methods (PM 3/33, as a consequence of PM 3/76 being updated)

 

 

EPPO Standards PM 5 - Pest Risk Analysis

  • Guidelines on the design and implementation of a buffer zone – NEW

  • Guidelines on the phytosanitary measure ‘Plants grown under complete physical isolation’ (revision of PM 5/8: alternative title)

 

EPPO Standards PM 6 - Sage use of biological control

  • List of Biological Control Agents used in the EPPO region without recognised adverse effects (revision of PM 6/3)

 

EPPO Standards PM 7 - Diagnostic protocols for regulated pests

  • Basic requirements for quality management in plant pest diagnosis laboratories (revision of PM 7/84)
  • Specific requirements for laboratories preparing accreditation for a plant pest diagnostic activity (revision of PM 7/98)
  • Guidelines for the production of biological reference material – NEW

 

The Council was informed that the following diagnostic protocols have been approved following the fast track procedure since the last Council meeting:

  • PM 7 Pospiviroids – NEW
  • PM 7/64 Xanthomonas arboricola pv. pruni (revision)
  • PM 7/17 Phyllosticta citricarpa (revision)
  • PM 7 Longidorus diadecturus – NEW
  • PM 7/59 Clavibacter sepedonicus (revision)
  • PM 7 Lycorma delicatula – NEW
  • PM 7 ToBRFV – NEW
  • PM 7/129 Barcoding (revision)
  • PM 7 Anoplophora glabripennis and Anoplophora chinensis – NEW
  • PM 7/121 ‘Candidatus Liberibacter africanus’, ‘Candidatus Liberibacter americanus’ and ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’ (revision)
  • PM 7 ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma phoenicium’ – NEW
  • PM 7 Guidelines for the management of nematode collections used for the production and maintenance of reference material – NEW

 

EPPO Standards PM 8 - Commodity-specific phytosanitary measures

  • Acer – NEW
  • Platanus – NEW
  • Tilia – NEW

 

EPPO Standards PM 9 - National Regulatory Control Systems

  • Ambrosia trifida – NEW

  • Ambrosia artemisiifolia (revised PM 9/7)

  • Pontederia crassipes (revised PM 9/8)

 

EPPO Standards PP 1 - Efficacy Evaluation of Plant Protection Products

  • Specific standards

- Aphids in winter oilseed rape, including aphid vectors of viruses – NEW

- Revision of PP 1/65 Downy mildews of vegetables

- Revision of PP 1/78 Root, stem, foliar and pod diseases of oilseed rape

- Revision of PP 1/103 Soil borne Phytophthora spp. on fruiting (solanaceous and cucurbitaceous) vegetable and legume vegetable crops

- Revision of PP 1/303 Efficacy evaluation of products for the control of grapevine trunk diseases in vineyards

- Revision of PP 1/313 Halyomorpha halys

- Revision of PP 1/185 Regulation of growth in olive (except sucker control)

 

  • General standards

- Revision of PP 1/181 Conduct and reporting of efficacy evaluation trials, including good experimental practice

- Revision of PP 1/248 Harmonized system for classification and coding of the uses of plant protection products