Australia suspends Vietnamese pomelo imports for 6 months over biosecurity concerns

The suspension took effect on Tuesday following an announcement by Australia's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF), Nghiem Quang Tuan, deputy director of the Plant Production and Protection Department under the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Environment, said at a regular press briefing on Wednesday.

In August, DAFF sent experts to Vietnam to inspect and assess several growing areas and packing facilities in Ho Chi Minh City, Vinh Long Province, and Can Tho City that had been issued codes for exporting pomelos to Australia.

The Australian side identified several issues that needed to be addressed, Tuan said.

Some farmers in the registered growing areas had not fully met Australia's requirements for controlling pests affecting fresh pomelos for export.

Production logs and pest-monitoring records were also incomplete, while pest management and monitoring procedures were inconsistent, particularly in terms of trap placement, including trap density and monitoring periods, he added.

Some packing facilities also failed to meet requirements, with records and document storage found to be incomplete.

The inspection, assessment and maintenance of conditions for registered growing-area codes also did not meet Australia's system-based management requirements, according to Tuan.

Australia reported that 70 percent of consignments had shown symptoms associated with pests since Vietnamese pomelos began entering its market in April.

Although the pests detected were not among those subject to Australia's quarantine concerns, the findings still raised biosecurity concerns, Tuan said.

Australia notified Vietnam on Monday that it would temporarily suspend imports of Vietnamese pomelos from Tuesday for six months to conduct a further review.

Tuan warned that the suspension could be extended if the shortcomings are not addressed in line with Australia's requirements.

Following the announcement, the department sent a document to agriculture and environment departments in the relevant provinces and centrally administered cities, asking them to urgently review all registered pomelo growing areas and packing facilities.

The department also asked local authorities to inspect and assess each growing area and packing facility against Australia's import requirements and require owners of registered growing-area codes and packing facilities to implement corrective measures.

Follow-up inspections will be conducted after the corrective measures are completed, according to the department.

The department will also strengthen technical training and guidance for growing-area and packing-facility operators on Australia's requirements, Tuan said.

At the same time, authorities will increase pest monitoring, standardize trap-placement methods, including trap density and monitoring periods, and ensure that records and documents are fully maintained for post-export verification, he added.

Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Environment Dang Ngoc Diep said Australia's suspension applies only to the Australian market and would not affect Vietnamese pomelo exports to other markets.

The ministry will coordinate with and guide localities in addressing Australia's requirements and negotiate with the Australian side to seek an earlier reopening of the market, before the end of the six-month suspension period, Diep said.