10 I EUROPEAN SEED I EUROPEAN-SEED.COM Towards the end of 2016, the EU adopted a new Plant Health Regulation, planned to come into force in 2019. Until then the EU Commission will work on so called secondary acts. European Seed asked Christophe Rouillard, Technical Manager Plant Health and Seed Trade of the European Seed Association why this process was necessary, and how the resulting set of legislations will have an impact on European seed companies. EUROPEAN SEED (ES): CHRISTOPHE, WHY WAS IT NECESSARY TO HAVE THIS NEW REGULATION? CHRISTOPHE ROUILLARD (CR): Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 on protective measures against plant pests (“Plant Health Regulation”) was adopted in October 2016, by EU Parliament and Council. On 13 December 2016, the Regulation entered into force and will be applicable from 14 December 2019. A Plant Health Regime has been in place since 1977 in the European Union, with the aim to pro- tect the EU against the harm caused by the entry, establishment and spread of harmful organisms injurious to plant and plant products. Since its inception in 1977, several changes amended the Plant Health Regime such as the introduction of the internal market concept in 1993, the successive enlargements to new Member States in 2004 and 2007; and the alignments with international stand- ards on phytosanitary measures developed by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC). Nevertheless, recent examples of outbreaks of plant pests such as the current case of Xylella fastidiosa triggered the need of a review of the Community Plant Health Regime. Certain chal- lenges may justify this new Plant Health Regulation, e.g. the globalisation and rise in European and international trade; climate change and its con- sequences in terms of spread of harmful organ- isms; the availability of scientific expertise useful to develop Pest Risk Analysis (PRA) as a revised plant health regime to better be prepared to deal with future outbreaks of plant pests, and set up more effective measures for the protection of the Union's territory and its plants. ES: HOW WAS ESA INVOLVED IN THE DRAFTING PROCESS? CR: Drafting an EU Regulation is definitively a long process. From 2008 to 2013, the evaluation of the European Union's plant health regime took place, during which ESA has contributed by giving officially its position and views on the amendments needed to the regime. In 2013 the European Commission proposed a new regulation on protective measures against plant pests. The proposal includes regulating pests on the basis of established criteria for risk assessment and prioritising those pests with the most serious conse- quences. It also provides tools for better surveillance and early eradication of outbreaks of new pests. In 2014, the outgoing European Parliament adopted its first-reading position. Seven trilogue meetings were held which concluded in December 2015, when the representatives of the Council and Parliament final- ised an overall compromise text. ES: WHAT WERE THE MOST CONTROVERSIAL TOPICS IN THIS REGULATION? CR: ESA lobbied not to introduce drastic changes in the EU approach to phytosanitary controls at import, i.e. changes that would result in a closed system with only a positive list of products and ori- gins allowed at import on the basis of a prior pest risk assessment. On the contrary, we supported the introduction of tools to prevent the introduction of new pests via imports. We also asked for a better recognition of the role of professional operators in the surveillance and the implementation of miti- gation measures against plant pests. We welcomed the proposal of the text as it allows to stay in a more or less open system, whereby only forbidden plant/ market combinations that would have a scientifi- cally proven damaging impact on EU food chain are not authorised for import. CROP PROTECTION THROUGH A REGULATION WITH PROTECTIVE MEASURES AGAINST PLANT PESTS. BY: MARCEL BRUINS WHY IT MATTERS In December 2016, the EU adopted a new Plant Health Regulation which will come into force in 2019. Until then the EU Commission will work on so called secondary acts. Find out what is at stake, and what will be the impact for European seed companies. CAN I SEE YOUR PASSPORT?