Phytosanitary

Phytosanitary Division

Phytosanitary is the prevention, agro-technical and organizational measures, that ensures plant health. Therefore, phytosanitary is important for the crop producing industry’s further development as it is especially significant branch of Agriculture. Moreover, Lithuania is a bridge between Western and Eastern Europe, and it is used for international trade in an unbroken chain. Therefore tremendous efforts are necessary to avoid an introduction of harmful organisms to plants and plant products in to the territory of the Republic of Lithuania and the European Union and to limit any spread.

Specific prevention, agro-technical and organizational measures are based on the legal level in line with International Plant Protection Convention. The most important regulation in this field of Phytosanitary is the Law on Phytosanitary of the Republic of Lithuania. One of the most important preventative measures to minimize risk of introduction of harmful organisms is the control of import of plants, plant products and other objects from non-European Union countries, therefore plants, plant products and other objects may be imported only through those border control points, which have phytosanitary inspection posts. Currently operates eight such posts, where inspectors of the State Plant Service under the Ministry of Agriculture (SPS) work 24 hours. Duties of inspectors are to control consignments of plants, plant products and other objects, but also the non plant origin consignment where wood packaging material is used, because it can be a magnificent environment for harmful organisms to travel long distances too.

Staff of Phytosanitary border inspection posts also control transit condition of the consignments and verify possible risk of introduction of harmful organisms into the territory of Lithuania.

We would like to state, that when we spoke about harmful organisms, we mean not only with naked eye visible organisms (for instance – insects), but also micro-organisms (nematodes, fungi, bacteria, viruses).

It is very important to know phytosanitary status of the country, therefore Phytosanitary division has obligation to organize surveillance for certain harmful organisms. Surveillance is performed annually in certain agricultural crops, orchards, nurseries, parks and forests, in order to identify harmful organisms. To prevent possible spread inside the country, there are regularly monitored market pleases of plants, plant products and related objects. Surveillance, including sampling of plants, their growth medium, water (used for irrigation) and plant products for analysis and public consultations about plant health, are taken by SPS regional offices, which are founded in the centers of counties, inspectors. Those inspectors also are responsible for export control of plants, plant products and other objects from Lithuania to the non-European Union countries, in line with phytosanitary requirements of importing country.

The case of finding of harmful organism lead to phytosanitary measures which are usually very expensive, therefore the identification harmful organism is the key factor for justification of requested measures; therefore samples are tested by experts in well equipped phytosanitary diagnostic laboratory in line with scientific data.

Phytosanitary Division, is in charge of implementation of the state policy to improve plant health in Lithuania, providing methodological management to SPS regional offices in mentioned above cases. In harmful organisms’ detection cases, Phytosanitary Division prepares contingency plans to eradicate harmful organisms, or to contain the spread, and coordinates its implementation.

Moreover, staff of Phytosanitary Division is involved in international activities in the field of plant health. One of the tasks of Phytosanitary Divisions is preparation of information about surveillance, detected outbreaks of harmful organisms, implementation of phytosanitary measures, for the institutions of European Union and International organizations. We would like to stress, that this is not the only function of Phytosanitary Division, experts are consistently implementing a plenty of other activities.

Contacts of eployees

Phytosanitary Division

Ozo str. 4A, LT-08200 Vilnius, phone +370 5 273 4411, Fax +370 5 273 0233

Important information

• LIST OF THE COMPANIES WHICH HAVE RIGHT TO TREAT (HT) AND MARK WOOD PACKAGING MATERIAL ACCORDING ISPM 15 IN LITHUANIA