Flower growers see red over federal government proposal to relax imported flower rules
Roses from Ecuador and other countries are sold throughout Australia. (ABC News: Armin Azad)
In short:
The federal government plans to stop treating imported flowers with glyphosate, saying it is not necessary to prevent disease spread or propagation.
The Australian flower industry is concerned about the biosecurity risks of ending the treatment.
What's next?
The government will take public submissions on its planned changes until February.
Australia last year imported $76 million worth of cut flowers, accounting for half of those sold across the country.
Before they are freighted from countries including Kenya, Ecuador and Colombia, the stems are soaked in herbicide glyphosate.
The process, called devitalisation, prevents propagation of flowers and helps prevent the spread of pests and diseases.
After an eight-year evaluation, the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Forestry (DAFF) has decided the post-harvest treatment is no longer needed.
Fifteen types of imported flowers and foliage are dipped in glyphosate before arriving in Australia. (ABC Rural: Lucy Cooper)
As part of the review, the department examined whether the practice of soaking stems in weedkiller was scientifically justified.
It also looked at import conditions to see if they met Australia's World Trade Organisation (WTO) obligations.
A draft report said the risk of propagation and biosecurity issues without the treatment was low.
About 15 types of flowers and foliage are treated, including roses and carnations.
At an online industry briefing in November, DAFF representatives told growers there were no documented cases of individuals propagating cut flower imports commercially in Australia.
They also said a review of global online garden forum posts on social media platform Reddit showed "very low prevalence of this activity" by home gardeners.
Anna Jabour is concerned the changes will affect the agriculture industry. (Supplied: Anna Jabour)
But local flower growers argue that it just shows that the devitalisation policy has been a deterrent.
Flower Industry Australia chief executive Anna Jabour said she was worried that scrapping the practice would have biosecurity implications.
"The department has not done adequate testing on what the impact of removing glyphosate will be for the broader agriculture sector," she said.
"This will impact table grapes, wine and olives."
Why are flower growers worried?
Imported flowers have some of the highest insect interceptions upon arrival in the country.
Nikki Davey says florists often find pests in imported produce. (ABC Rural: Jane McNaughton)
Victorian flower grower Nikki Davey said there were plenty of flowers undetected by quarantine officers.
"It's not uncommon to hear florists talk about opening or unwrapping a bunch of flowers and having a pest fly out," she said.
"It's about us understanding the risks with being dependent on those high volumes of imported flowers."
In recent years flower imports have been behind the introduction of several pests into Australia, including serpentine leafminer, western flower thrip, and Russian wheat aphid.
The tiny Russian wheat aphid can cause significant losses in cereal crops. (ABC Rural: James Jooste)
But the biggest pest threat to Australia is the bacteria xylella.
Australia is one of the few countries free of the pathogen, which is spread by infected plant material and insects and has the potential to affect up to 600 plant species.
"Once it's established, there is no cure," Ms Jabour said.
"It's caused billions of dollars in changed landscapes permanently where it has impacted countries.
"The department is removing this [devitalisation] requirement and they're focusing on how it limits propagation, but they haven't done the biosecurity risk analysis adequately."
The government plans to stop the practice of devitalisation. (ABC News: Tyne Logan)
Flower import review
Australia and New Zealand are the only countries that have required devitalisation of imported cut flowers and foliage.
New Zealand opted to ditch it in November this year, a move which also attracted backlash from its local flower growers.
A DAFF spokesperson said: "The Australian government will never compromise on biosecurity."
"The draft pest risk analysis identifies that biosecurity risks associated with diversion from intended use achieves Australia's appropriate level of protection," the spokesperson said.
"Therefore, phytosanitary measures are not required."
Flowers grown in Kenya are sold by Australian florists. (Foreign Correspondent: Isabella Higgins)
The body representing the country's nursery operators, Greenlife Industry Australia (GIA), said it wanted to see more evidence to support the government's decision.
"Australia works very hard to protect the fragile nature of the land where we grow things and to really manage the risk of pests, diseases and weeds," chief executive Joanna Cave said.
"So it's a real shame to chip a hole in that armour on the basis of no evidence, as far as we can see."
Joanna Cave says the labelling of flower products is more important than ever. (Supplied: Greenlife Industry Australia)
Ms Jabour said the mandatory country-of-origin labelling of flowers had never been more relevant.
"If you're going to dismantle the policy, you'll need to bring in labelling requirements that clearly states 'do not propagate,'" she said.
Public submissions on the draft report into the review of the devitalisation of cut flowers close in February next year.
DAFF said it would continue its broader pest risk analysis of imported cut flowers, focusing on bacteria, viruses and fungi.