EU identifies two plant diseases threatening UK willow imports
European regulators have completed a risk assessment of willow cuttings imported from the United Kingdom, identifying two regulated plant pathogens as potential threats to EU agriculture. The findings will shape import protocols and could affect trade in these widely-used ornamental and biomass plants.
Originaltitel: Commodity risk assessment of Salix unrooted cuttings from the UK
The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by unrooted cuttings of Salix species (S. aegyptiaca, S. eriocephala, S. gmelinii, S. miyabeana, S. purpurea, S. rehderiana, S. schwerinii, S. udensis, S. viminalis) imported from the United Kingdom (UK). The assessment was performed considering the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by the UK. All pests potentially associated with the commodities were evaluated against specific criteria. Only two EU Regulated pests (the fungus Entoleuca mammata and the oomycete Phytophthora ramorum (non-EU isolates)), present in the UK and potentially associated with the commodity, were considered as relevant for this Opinion. No pests non-regulated in the EU were identified to be selected for further evaluation.