Archived - Notice to Industry - European Union adopts new phytosanitary requirements for the export of wood from host species of the Asian longhorned beetle (ALHB)

August 11, 2015, Ottawa: Effective immediately, a phytosanitary certificate is required for the exports of plant and plant products to the European Union (EU) from areas where Asian longhorned beetle (ALHB) is known to be present.

On June 10, 2015, the EU adopted emergency measures to prevent further introduction and spread of the ALHB. The directive applies to export of plants and plant products from areas where ALHB is known to occur including Canada and the United States (U.S). The following species are regulated by the EU:

• Acer spp.
• Aesculus spp.
• Alnus spp.
• Betula spp.
• Carpinus spp.
• Cercidiphyllum spp.
• Corylus spp.
• Fagus spp.
• Fraxinus spp.
• Koelreuteria spp.
• Platanus spp.
• Populus spp.
• Salix spp.
• Tilia spp.
• Ulmus spp.

To export wood products of these species including logs, lumber and wood chips, a phytosanitary certificate is now required. The phytosanitary certificate must confirm that:

• logs, lumber or wood chips originate in a pest free area, or
• logs, lumber or wood chips are debarked and heat treated to a core temperature of 56 °C for a minimum duration of 30 continuous minutes throughout the entire profile of the wood (including at its core).  In case of heat treatment, the wood or wrapping must be marked or tagged "HT"; or
• wood chips are debarked and have been processed into pieces of not more than 2.5 cm thickness and width.

Re-export of wood products of the species regulated by the EU and originating from third countries where ALHB is known to occur (excluding the United States) must be based upon the original phytosanitary certificate which accompanied the import at the time of entry to Canada as per policy directive D-02-12 indicating that the import was treated prior to entry.

For the re-export of wood originating from the U.S., a heat treatment certificate or other verification that treatment has been undertaken, for example, a heat treatment stamp applied to the wood (or bundle wrapper) by a facility authorized by the American Lumber Standards Committee (ALSC) may be acceptable. For wood originating from a pest free area of the U.S., a phytosanitary certificate, certificate of origin or commercial documents may also be acceptable to allow certification of re-export shipments.

The new phytosanitary requirements are detailed in the Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2015/893, as regards measures to prevent the introduction into and the spread within the Union of Anoplophora glabripennis (Motschulsky).

If you have questions regarding this new measure, please contact the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.