Biosecurity Fiji and Australia achieved Deal after Quarantine Meeting

Papaya boost for Fiji

Felix Chaudhary

THERE has been a major breakthrough for papaya producers and exporters following an agreement yesterday that allows Fiji red papaya to be transported as loose cargo on Boeing 737 aircraft.

The deal brokered between Biosecurity Fiji and Australia was achieved after a Bilateral Quarantine Meeting at the Novotel on Monday.

Representatives from the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji, Biosecurity Australia and the Department of Agriculture and Pacific Horticultural and Agricultural Market Access (PHAMA) met and discussed the issue at length, with the Fiji contingent highlighting the success of the country's control methods in preventing pests from entering Australia over the last seven years as proof that papaya could be exported as loose cargo without risk.

BAF chief executive officer Elvis Silvestrini said the agreement was good news for the booming papaya industry. He said the industry was concerned about how it would export papaya to Australia in 737 aircraft as these aircraft did not have provisions for LD containers which was one of the import requirements under our Bilateral Quarantine Agreement (BQA) for papaya exports - to ensure pests are not able to enter containers in transit.

"I am pleased to say that Biosecurity Australia agreed to our request to have the papaya shipped to Australia as loose cargo, provided we have sound trace back integrity for each consignment and appropriate measures are taken to prevent re-infestation and we'll work with the industry on that," he said.

Mr Silvestrini said the breakthrough with his Australian counterparts come as papaya exports for 2011 reached 644 tonnes with 85 per cent going to the Australian market alone.

"This is a major achievement for Fiji's trade in papaya with Australia market. Currently our papaya export to Australia is increasing significantly with total exports to date for 2011 at 644 tonnes with 85 per cent of exports going to the Australian market. This is a marked difference to 2010 when exports to Australia made up only 30 per cent of total exports. There is potential to export 2000 tonnes per year as the popularity of red papaya grows."

Mr Silvestrini said BAF would like to see the papaya exports to Australia sustained and further increased and as such would do everything possible to help the industry.

Biosecurity Australia has also agreed to allow papaya to be shipped into Australia in newspaper packaging.

Fiji is exporting papaya to New Zealand under these conditions and this provides a further option to exporters to protect the fruit.

Mr Silvestrini said the use of recycled newspaper would reduce the cost of packaging compared to foam packing. This is a saving for exporters and has the added advantage of being a more environmentally friendly option.

Agriculture permanent secretary Colonel Mason Smith said the meeting was crucial given the importance of biosecurity in facilitating agricultural trade between countries.

He said Fiji regarded Australia as a primary market for agricultural produce. And added that with additional meetings, more of Fiji's agricultural products could gain and maintain access to markets in Australia,

PHAMA's efforts in helping developing countries like Fiji address market access issues was also acknowledged by the permanent secretary.