Publications by authors named "N G Cunniffe"

Pest categorisation of .

EFSA J

January 2025

Following the commodity risk assessment of and plants for planting from Türkiye, in which (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), the pistachio oyster scale or yellow pistachio scale, was identified as a pest of possible concern, the EFSA Panel on Plant Health performed a pest categorisation for the territory of the European Union (EU). is reported as a polyphagous pest which, however, mainly affects plants of the genus Originating from Asia, it is widely distributed in pistachio producing countries of Central, South and West Asia. Within the EU, the pest has been reported from Cyprus and Greece.

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The European Commission requested the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to prepare and deliver risk assessments for commodities listed in Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 as 'High-risk plants, plant products and other objects'. This Scientific Opinion covers plant health risks posed by plants of hybrids of x imported from Ukraine, taking into account the available scientific information, including the technical information provided by Ukraine. All pests that may be associated with the hybrids of x were evaluated against specific criteria for their relevance for this opinion.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The European Commission tasked the EFSA Panel on Plant Health with assessing the risk of pests related to unrooted cuttings produced in Costa Rica, focusing on both regulated and non-regulated pests.
  • - A total of 22 regulated pest species were identified, including various viruses affecting plants, and were analyzed for potential entry risks and the effectiveness of Costa Rica's risk mitigation strategies.
  • - The evaluation concluded that while the risk of pest contamination varied among those studied, there is a high likelihood (95% certainty) that most unrooted cuttings would be free of the tomato spotted wilt virus, estimating that 9,927 to 10,000 out of 10,000 bags would not carry this pest. *
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Article Synopsis
  • The European Commission tasked the EFSA Panel on Plant Health to assess the plant health risks of high-risk commodities imported from the UK, as listed in EU regulation 2018/2019.
  • The risk assessment categorized the commodities into four groups, including graftwood, bare root plants, potted plants, and large specimen trees, and evaluated pests linked to these groups.
  • Two EU quarantine pests were identified for further evaluation based on their relevance, with the assessment considering factors like plant age and the effectiveness of risk mitigation measures from the UK.
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Plant viruses threaten food security and are often transmitted by insect vectors. Non-persistently transmitted (NPT) plant viruses are transmitted almost exclusively by aphids. Because virions attach to the aphid's stylet (mouthparts) and are acquired and inoculated via brief epidermal probes, the aphid-virus interaction is highly transient, with a very short aphid virus retention time.

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