2454 final report.pdf - Agra CEAS Consulting

Evaluation of the Community Plant Health Regime: Final Report
DG SANCO Evaluation Framework Contract Lot 3 (Food Chain)
General survey results
Q6.7* Extent to which the CPHR regime should be revised in order to have more focus on prevention and
early action:
All MS CAs (25) and 23 out of 27 stakeholders (1 do not know) consider that the CPHR regime should be revised in
order to have more focus on prevention and early action
* Q 6.7 for CA q/naire and Q6.6 for stakeholder q/naire
The main arguments justifying this position can be summarized as follows:
Once a given HO enters the EU it is difficult to stop it due to the free movement of goods.
Therefore it is considered key to focus on preventive measures.
Because prevention is always more effective and cheaper than subsequent eradication plans
(“prevention is better than cure‖). Emphasis should be put on prevention so that the
necessary protocols and procedures are in place and action can be taken quickly if early
action needs to be taken.
Interviewees have insisted on the need to strengthen the current emergency approach for
outbreak measures by ensuring that emergency measures are adopted and adapted more rapidly,
based on the evaluation of pest situation and evolution through PRAs that should be developed
step by step. Additionally, the possibilities of prohibition of importation of some plants and some
plant products under certain conditions may be needed to effectively protect the Community.
Finally the creation of emergency teams within DG SANCO should be considered in order to
develop a coordinated approach and action plan for dealing with emergency situations. This is
currently practised in animal health and includes support from a network of experts from MS and
third countries.
3.7.3 Conclusions on performance of control and emergency measures
Overall, the view from the general survey, confirmed by the expert interviews and field visits, is
that control and emergency measures have been partly successful in preventing the entry,
establishment and spread of HOs in the EU. This is the view of the majority of both MS CAs and
of the stakeholders that responded to the general survey. Results however, tend to vary by pest
and by region. The effectiveness of the measures taken tends to be specific to the HO being
targeted, and therefore has to be considered on a case by case basis.
Additionally a distinction has to be made between emergency measures and control measures.
While emergency measures are largely considered to have been ineffective on the basis that they
are generally adopted too late (despite the fact that the legislative process as such – comitology -
is relatively less cumbersome than for control measures), control measures are generally
considered to have been largely effective (despite the fact that the legislative process in this case
– Council approval and since Lisbon Treaty (Dec. 1, 2009) co-decision Council and Parliament -
is by definition longer and less flexible, which is one reason why fewer Control Directives have
been adopted). In particular the measures for bacteria ring rot and brown rot in potatoes are
considered to have been most effective.
Food Chain Evaluation Consortium 149