Final non-regulated risk analysis report for table grapes from the Republic of Korea

Pest risk assessments for quarantine pests

Quarantine pests associated with table grapes from Korea are identified in the pest categorisation process (Appendix A). This chapter assesses the probability of the entry, establishment and spread of these pests and the likelihood of associated potential economic consequences.

Pest categorisation identified 19 quarantine pests associated with table grapes from Korea. Of these, 15 pests are of national concern and 4 are of regional concern. Table 4.1 identifies these quarantine pests and full details of the pest categorisation are given in Appendix A. Additional quarantine pest data are given in Appendix B. Assessments of risks associated with these pests are presented in this chapter. Pests are listed or grouped according to their taxonomic classification, consistent with Appendix A and Appendix B.

Table 4.1 Quarantine pests for table grapes from Korea

Pest	Common name
Spider mite (Acari: Tetranychidae)
Tetranychus kanzawai ^WA, EP	Kanzawa spider mite
Ladybird (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae)
Harmonia axyridis^EP	harlequin ladybird
Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)
Popillia mutans ^EP	scarab beetle
Popillia quadriguttata ^EP	Chinese rose beetle
Fruit fly (Diptera: Drosophilidae)
Drosophila suzukii^EP	spotted winged drosophila
Phylloxera (Hemiptera: Phylloxeridae)
Daktulosphaira vitifoliae ^EP	grape phylloxera
Soft scales (Hemiptera: Coccidae)
Parthenolecanium corni^WA,^EP	European fruit lecanium scale
Mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae)
Planococcus kraunhiae^EP	Japanese mealybug
Pseudococcus comstocki ^EP	Comstock’s mealybug
Leafroller moths (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae)
Eupoecilia ambiguella^EP		European grape berry moth
Sparganothis pilleriana^EP		leaf rolling tortrix
Moth (Lepidoptera: Pterophoridae)
Nippoptilia vitis^EP	grape plume moth
Moth (Lepidoptera: Oecophoridae)
Stathmopoda auriferella^EP	apple heliodinid
Thrips (Thysanoptera: Thripidae)
Frankliniella occidentalis ^NT, EP		western flower thrips
Fungi
Monilinia fructigena ^EP	brown rot
Physalospora baccae^EP	grape cluster black rot
Phakopsora euvitis^EP	grapevine leaf rust
Phomopsis viticola^WA, EP	phomopsis cane and leaf spot
Viruses
Tomato ringspot virus^EP
^WA. Regional pest for the state of Western Australia. ^NT. Regional pest for the Northern Territory. ^EP: Species has been assessed previously and import policy already exists.

Pest risk assessments were completed to determine whether the risk posed by each pest exceeds Australia’s ALOP and thus whether phytosanitary measures are required to manage the risk. Pest risk assessments already existed for all of the pests considered here as they have been assessed previously by Biosecurity Australia. The pest risk assessments considered in this report assess the change to the likelihood of entry (importation) from previous assessments due to differences in the country assessed. This type of assessment is reflected in the introduction and layout of the risk assessments that follow. In this import risk analysis the superscript ‘EP’ is used for pests that have previously been assessed and a policy already exists.

Some pests identified in this assessment have been recorded in only some regions of Australia, and due to interstate quarantine regulations are considered pests of regional concern. These organisms are identified with a superscript, such as ‘NT’, or ‘WA’, for the state for which the regional pest status is considered.

The unrestricted risk estimate (URE) for each quarantine pest is based on the assumption that table grapes are produced for export without fruit bagging. Biosecurity Australia considers there may be situations either currently or in the future where the practice of bagging may not be consistent, feasible or commercially viable. This approach is consistent with that taken on previous IRAs on apples and pears from China and other countries where fruit bagging is used. This approach also ensures consistency in the assessment of similar pests on table grapes between IRAs in countries where bagging is not used.

Grapes harvested, packed, stored and transported for export to Australia may need to travel variable distances to ports. Depending on the port of departure and arrival it could take several weeks for general sea freight from Korea to Australia. Grapes could potentially be air freighted from Korea to Australia within about a week from harvest. While the unrestricted risk assessments undertaken in this risk analysis do not impose any mandatory measures during storage and transport, common commercial practices may impact on the survival of some pests. If these conditions are applied to all consignments for a minimum period of time, then those conditions can be considered as part of the unrestricted risk assessment. As the minimum period in storage and transport after harvest is likely to be around one week, with an optimal cool chain temperature of 0–2 ºC, the impact of these conditions on pests has been broadly but conservatively considered.