Import halt leaves watermelon trade on hold
New Zealand consumers may have to go without melons in their fruit salad after a suspension of imports from Australia.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) had suspended the importation of melons (rockmelon, honeydew and watermelon), cucumber and courgettes after finding cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV) on Australian produce at the border.
Imports were restricted to prevent this disease from entering New Zealand. But supermarkets say the lack of availability should be short-lived.
Countdown had put notices in its stores telling customers that watermelons and courgettes from Australia were unavailable due to import restrictions.
‘‘Unfortunately, the New Zealand market depends on these imports to fill supply when our local product is out of season,’’ a Countdown spokeswoman said.
New-season domestically grown courgettes will come onto the market in about midSeptember, while the melon season won’t start until January.
Countdown was importing several products, including capsicum. ‘‘This is something we may do from time to time when certain fruits or vegetables are out of season.’’
Foodstuffs, which operates the New World, Pak’n Save and Four Square supermarket chains, said the trade for melons and courgettes was on hold until new shipments came from Australia, but was likely to recommence any day.
‘‘Importers are on standby,’’ a Foodstuffs spokeswoman said.
New Zealand courgettes were starting to come into season and supply would increase over the coming weeks and months.
‘‘It’s important that we all work together to ensure that unwanted pests and diseases do not enter New Zealand,’’ the spokeswoman said.
An MPI spokeswoman said the virus was detected on a consignment of watermelon by MPI border staff as part of its routine border clearance inspections, and was diagnosed by its laboratory on August 15.
The virus was first found on a consignment of watermelons from Australia. As the virus was known to infect other types of fruit and vegetables hosts of the cucurbit family, including pumpkin, scallopini, zucchini, cucumbers and other types of melon, a suspension was put on these imports from Australia.
New import requirements were put in place on August 27 on all cucurbit hosts from Australia where CGMMV was known to occur. The requirements contain measures that will manage the risk of CGMMV on host fruit arriving at New Zealand’s border.
Australian growers and exporters will have to meet these new import requirements if they want to import host fruit and vegetables.
Australian authorities have to provide an assurance that host fruit and vegetables exported to New Zealand have been sourced from an area free from CGMMV.
MPI’s border teams would also continue to visually inspect all consignments arriving at the border to verify that the new import requirements were being met, the spokeswoman said.
‘‘Unfortunately, the New Zealand market depends on these imports to fill supply when our local product is out of season.’’ Countdown spokeswoman