|
|
|
Growers protest quarantine changes
1 Jun 2004
Apple and pear growers will protest today in Sydney against new proposals to allow the importation of New Zealand apples infected with fire blight. Biosecurity Australia released an import risk analysis earlier this year which would allow NZ apples to be imported under strict conditions. If approval is granted, there are fears that fire blight would cause serious damage to Australian apple and pear orchards.
Farmers will give away apples in Penrith and central Sydney today as part of national action to show the quality of Australian fruit.
The NSW Apple and Pear Growers' Association said Biosecurity Australia's proposed import protocols contain the world's weakest protocols against fire blight, which would inevitably lead to the introduction of the disease. Consumers need to know how their apples will be affected, the association's chairman Peter Darley said.
The NSW Farmers' Association will lodge a submission on the revised import risk analysis by the end of June.
News.com.au, 1/6/04.
|
|
