Despite our best efforts to keep brown marmorated stink bugs (BMSB) out of Australia, several have been discovered by an importer at Burleigh Heads on the Gold Coast while unpacking goods from a consignment of several containers imported from China. They found multiple live, dying and dead stink bugs and some escaped into nearby vegetation. Last week residents in nearby Currumbin found some of the bugs in their yards.
The warehouse premises at Burleigh – and other goods stored in the vicinity – have since been treated by pest controllers, according to a spokesperson for Biosecurity Queensland.
The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment (DAWE), has subsequently issued Industry Advice Notice (IAN) no. 20-2022 titled: Addition of China to the BMSB Emerging Risk Country List.
LCL / FAK containers and break bulk goods (including those shipped on flat rack or in open top containers) are considered to be out of scope for increased inspection activities. Other FCLs, termed in scope containers, will be selected at random and will be directed for an ‘Inspection – Seals Intact Inspection’ by DAWE.
These measures target high risk goods shipped between 01 September 2021 and 30 April 2022 (inclusive), which will require mandatory treatment.
The stink bug pest can arrive in Australia on cargo and containers shipped between September and April each year. This coincides with autumn and winter in the Northern Hemisphere
Until recently, BMSB was not found in Australia and government biosecurity authorities have done their best to keep it out. It could decimate our fruit and vegetable crops and severely impact our agricultural industries. Juvenile and adult bugs feed on crops, rendering them unsellable or reducing production yields.
Treatments can be carried out offshore, and Australian importers are advised to discuss treatment options with their suppliers at port of loading.
China joins other newly emerging risk countries for the 2021-22 BMSB season. The updated list includes Poland, Belarus, Malta, Sweden, United Kingdom, and Chile.
For more information about import cargo and quarantine treatments, contact us here at Colless Young. As licensed Customs Brokers and International Freight Forwarders, we handle all your international shipping and transport needs. We are based in Brisbane and offer a complete range of logistics services, for both air and sea freight, import and export – including fumigation, warehousing and trucking – through all Australian ports and airports.
