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By Shafiya Hussein, Grains Biosecurity Officer, South Australia

South Australia’s $3.82-billion grains industry contributed 16.7 per cent of the state’s exports in 2019-20, so protecting this sector from biosecurity threats is vital.

To increase and maintain our international agricultural trade, we need to stop invasive plant and animal pathogens, insects and weeds entering the state via people, cargo, postal goods, and unclean/infested imports.

International pre-border measures are the first line of defence, while on-arrival interventions ensure that import requirements have been met and are free of pests or diseases – our second line of defence.

Within Australia, plant quarantine restrictions at state borders play an important role, while in SA, biosecurity standards and quarantine requirements are in place to manage the risks to our grain industries, particularly from pests and diseases that may already be present or endemic in other states such as, Clubroot fungus, Wheat Rust Ug99 and Barley Stripe Mosaic Virus.

This is achieved through the regulation of the movement of plant products and materials, soil, and harvest machinery into SA by the following mechanisms:

• Mandatory reporting of suspected plant pests under the Plant Health Act 2009. The Act provides quarantine mechanisms, powers of entry and powers to apply orders on owners of properties critical to delimiting and responding to exotic plant pest detections.
• Reporting of suspected plant pests through the 24- hour Emergency Plant Pest Hotline 1800 084 881.
• Undertaking surveillance for plant pests and diseases, to provide early warning of incursions.
• Maintaining a First Response Team ready to respond to detections of exotic plant pests and diseases affecting the grains and horticulture industries.
• Import compliance, inspection and audit arrangements for plant products, to enforce the requirements of the Plant Quarantine Standard, which includes strict regulations and requirements on the entry of plants and plant-related products into SA.

To support the national and state systems in place, biosecurity on your property cannot be ignored.

One way to ensure compliance is through a Farm Biosecurity Program. This usually involves a set of procedures designed to protect farms from the entry and spread of invasive weeds, insects and diseases from neighbouring farms, interstate, and international hitchhikers.

Actions would include regularly monitoring crops and silos for pests; purchasing seed from a reputable source and record where it originates from; adhering to quarantine requirements/ isolation of hay and other plant material; participating in plant pest surveillance and trapping systems, maintaining high hygiene standards to ensure greater market access; and collaborating and consulting with state grains biosecurity officers.

Early detection is paramount to limit the impacts of an outbreak.

To assist SA graingrowers in crop protection, PIRSA, in partnership with Plant Health Australia and Grain Producers Australia, is delivering the Grains Farm Biosecurity Program through new grain biosecurity officer Shafiya Hussein.

Contact Shafiya Hussein on 0437 723 295 or shafiya.hussein@sa.gov.au

Article published in Stock Journal on 24 February 2022