Biosecurity
On behalf of the Australian sweetpotato industry, ASPG invests $20-50K per year reducing risks of exotic pests and diseases entering Australia. In collaboration with Plant Health Australia ASPG as the Peak Industry Body for sweetpotatoes has signed the national Emergency Pest Plant Response Deed (EPPRD). The EPPRD commits sweetpotato growers to collaborating with other industries and government agencies in eradicating exotic pests (where feasible, and where sweetpotato is an affected crop). In return, the other industries/governments will support sweetpotato growers financially, operationally, and socially when they report (and are impacted by) an incursion.
ASPG takes biosecurity seriously. Funding supports annual responsibilities as an EPPRD signatory (contingency planning, incursion management, developing strategies for supporting growers). Through grower levies, ASPG also targets specific research activities, including updating the Sweetpotato Biosecurity Plan, prioritising pests for investigation, and undertaking targeted science for these priority pests.
What biosecutiry wants to keep out of Australia: Guava Root Knot Nematode (NOT IN Australia) severely affecting a sweetpotato storage root (image courtesy of EPPO Global Database).