G/SPS/N/NZL/768  
16 May 2024  
(24-3823) Page: 1/3 
Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION  
1. Notifying Member:  NEW ZEALAND  
If applicable, name of local government involved:   
2. Agency responsible:  Ministry for Primary Industries  
3. Products covered (provide tariff item number(s) as specified in national 
schedules deposited with the WTO; ICS numbers should be provided in addition, 
where applicable):  Seeds for sowing  
4. Regions or countries likely to be affected, to the extent relevant or practicable : 
[X] All trading partners   
[ ] Specific regions or countries:   
5. Title of the notified document:  Ministry for Primary Industries,  Import Health Standard: 
Seeds for Sowing (155.02.05) . Language(s):  English . Number of pages:  193 
https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2024/SPS/NZL/24_03247_00_e.pdf  
6. Description of content:  MPI is proposing the following changes to the Import Health 
Standard Seeds for Sowing (155.02.05) : 
1. Adding an option for seeds to come from an area where a pest is absent as per 
ISPM 8: Determination of pest status in an area , in situations where there is already 
an option for the seeds to come from a pest -free area;  
2. This involves changing the requirements in 33 schedules in Part 2 of the Import Health 
Standard. The schedules are Acrocomia , Agropyron , Arachis hypogaea , Avena , Beta, 
Camellia sinensis , Cannabis sativa , Capsicum , Cicer, Cocos , Coriandrum , Corypha , 
Cuminum , Elaeis , Glebionis , Glycine , Hordeum , Lavandula , Livistona , Medicago , 
Petunia , Phaseolus , Phoenix , Pisum , Sesamum , Solanum , Solanum lycopersicum , 
Sorghum , Trigonella foenum -graecum , Triticum , Vicia and Zea; 
3. Changing the wording for additional declarations for pests from "not known to occur" 
to "the seeds are produced in an area where [pest] is absent";  
4. This involves changing the requirements in 18 schedules in Part 2 of the Import Health 
Standard. The schedul es are Capsicum, Carpinus, Carya, Castanea, Citrus, Cucumis, 
Cucurbitaceae, Desmodium, Eriobotryia, Helianthus, Juglans, Lens, Lithocarpus 
densiflorus, Medicago, Nicotiana tabacum, Quercus, Ulmus and Vigna ; 
5. Changing the requirements for importing seeds of New Zealand origin in section 1.7 in 
the standard;  
6. Removing the following pests in Part 2 of the Import Health Standard:  
• Claviceps gigantea  and Cochliobolus tuberculatus  from the Zea schedule ; 
• Cochliobolus miyabeanus  from the Phaseolus  schedule ; 
• High plain s virus from the Avena , Hordeum  and Triticum schedule ; 
• Curvularia verruculosa  from the Triticum  schedule ; 
• Grapevine yellow speckle viroid 2 from the Vitis schedule ; 
7. Adding seed testing (offshore or on -arrival in New Zealand) as an option for a 
phytosanitar y measure in Part 2 of the Import Health Standard, for:  
• Xanthomonas campestris  pv. undulosa  in the Avena , Hordeum  and Triticum  
schedule ; G/SPS/N/NZL/768  
 
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  • Pseudomonas syringae  pv. striafaciens in the Hordeum  schedule ; 
• Rathayibacter tritici  in the Hordeum and Triticum  schedule ; 
• Xanthomonas campestris  pv. sesami  in the Sesamum schedule ; 
• Curtobacterium flaccumfaciens  pv. flaccumfaciens  and Xanthomonas campestris  pv. 
vignicola  in the Vigna  schedule ; 
8. Increasing the sample size for testing Arachis hypogaea  seeds for  Ralstonia 
pseudosolanacearum  from 400 seeds to 4,000 seeds;  
9. Adding testing requirements for Tomato black ring virus for Rubus  and Vitis seeds;  
10. Listing Rumex sanguineus  as eligible to import into New Zealand under basic import 
requirements;  
11. Removing the re quirement for importers to declare that the seed in their consignments 
is not a seed lot of the following varieties of Beta vulgaris  var. rapacea : Kyros 
16UB128, Bangor 16UB126, Bangor 15UB079, Bangor 16UB114, Feldherr 16UB131 or 
Troya 16UB112 in section 1 .9 in the Import Health Standard.  
7. Objective and rationale: [  ] food safety, [  ] animal health, [X]  plant protection, 
[ ] protect humans from animal/plant pest or disease, [X]  protect territory from 
other damage from pests.   
8. Is there a relevant international standard? If so, identify the standard:  
[ ] Codex Alimentarius Commission (e.g.  title or serial number of Codex 
standard or related text) :  
[ ] World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) (e.g.  Terrestrial or Aquatic 
Animal Health Code, chapter number) :  
[X] International Plant Protection Convention (e.g.  ISPM number) : ISPM No. 1 
and 38  
[ ] None  
Does this proposed regulation conform to the relevant international standard?  
[X] Yes   [  ] No 
If no, describe, whenever possible, how and why it deviates from the 
international standard:   
9. Other relevant documents and language(s) in which these are available:  
Consultation document 'Amendments to the import health standard Seeds for Sowing' 
which provides the rationale fo r the changes:  
https://members.wto.org/crnattachments/2024/SPS/NZL/24_03247_01_e.pdf  
(available in English)  
10. Proposed date of adoptio n (dd/mm/yy) : 1 August 2024  
Proposed date of publication (dd/mm/yy) : 1 August 2024  
11. Proposed date of entry into force: [X]  Six months from date of publication , 
and/or  (dd/mm/yy) : The proposed date of entry into force for the proposed change in 
the wording for additional declarations for pests, from "not known to occur" to "the seeds 
are produced in an area where [pest] is absent", is 1 February 2025 (six months from the 
proposed date of publication).  
[X] Trade facilitating measure  1 August 2024 is t he proposed date of entry into force 
for all the other proposed changes, which are trade facilitating.  
12. Final date for comments: [  ] Sixty days from the date of circulation of the 
notification and/or (dd/mm/yy) : 18 July 2024  
Agency or authority designated to handle comments: [X]  National Notification 
Authority, [X]  National Enquiry Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address (if 
avail able) of other body:   G/SPS/N/NZL/768  
 
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  Sally Griffin, Coordinator, SPS New Zealand, PO Box 2526, Wellington, New Zealand. Tel: 
+(64 4) 894 0431; Fax: +(64 4) 894 0733; E -mail: sps@mpi.govt.nz  
Website:  https://www.mpi.govt.nz/importing/overview/access -and-trade -into-new-
zealand/world -trade-organization -notifications/  
13. Text(s) available from: [X]  National Notification Authority, [X]  National Enquiry 
Point. Address, fax number and e -mail address (if available) of other body:   
Sally Griffin, Coordinator, SPS New Zealand, PO Box 2526, Wellington, New Zealand. Tel : 
+(64 4) 894 0431; Fax: +(64 4) 894 0733; E -mail: sps@mpi.govt.nz  
Website:  https://www.mpi.govt.nz/importing/overview/access -and-trade -into-new-
zealand/world -trade-organization -notifications/