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For previous years’ media releases, please visit the Media release archive.

Exploring northern opportunities at Food Futures 2023

July 17, 2023

PHA’s Rohan Burgess, Dr Matt Hill, and Trevor Dunmall recently attended the Northern Australia Food Futures 2023 conference in Darwin. Themed ‘Northern myths, opportunities and realities’, the conference covered a range of topics that showcased northern opportunities, influenced policy creation, and attracted investment to the area. More

Delivering surveillance and resourcing into the future

July 17, 2023

The second workshop in a project investigating requirements for the development of a Nationally Integrated Surveillance System for Plant Pests (NISSPP) was held early in June, following the recent Plant Health Australia (PHA) Member meetings. Plant industry and government representatives converged to discuss the delivery and resourcing requirements for plant pest surveillance. More

Supporting myrtle rust research and management

July 17, 2023

Themed ‘Where to from here?’, the Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference was held at the University of Sydney from 21-23 June 2023. Over 90 participants from Australasia attended the three-day conference, highlighting research and management approaches that have been undertaken since myrtle rust was first reported in Australia. More

Nanopore sequencing for biosecurity

July 17, 2023

An intensive three-day Nanopore Sequencing for Biosecurity workshop was delivered by the Centre for Crop and Disease Management at Curtin University in Perth, Western Australia, from 27-29 June.  Three NPBDN members from across Australia were supported to attend the workshop through the National Plant Diagnostic Professional Development Protocols Project, coordinated and delivered by Plant Health Australia (PHA) and funded by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry. More

Developing a National Action Plan for Pests of Timber and Trees

July 17, 2023

In the coming months Plant Health Australia (PHA) will be hosting two national workshops to progress the development of a National Action Plan for Pests of Timber and Trees and its associated Implementation Schedule.

The workshops will offer an opportunity to test and refine proposed actions for the National Action Plan for Pests of Timber and Trees. More

Message from the CEO – July 2023

July 17, 2023

An ever-changing risk landscape requires Plant Health Australia (PHA) to explore new ways to achieve and operate with a high level of vigilance and future focus. During the first six months of the new financial year our full portfolio of work aligned to our five-year strategic plan, that supports and strengthens Australia’s biosecurity system, continues. More

Sharing the importance of science-based work in biosecurity

July 17, 2023

Continuing Plant Health Australia’s (PHA) plant biosecurity lecture series, Project Officers Luke McKee and Rebecca Powderly recently presented to students at the Australian National University (ANU) studying Agricultural Systems, and students at the Canberra Institute of Technology (CIT) studying a Diploma of Horticulture. More

Annual Operational Plan 2023-24 Addendum – Subscriptions

July 14, 2023

Plant Health Australia’s (PHA) Annual Operational Plan was published in June 2023, however at the time of publishing, statistics used to calculate Member subscriptions for 2023-24 were not available.

Individual subscription levels vary between years due to shifts in Local Value of Production (LVP) for plant industries which, in turn, affects the relative proportion of individual member subscriptions calculated in accordance with the three-year rolling average formula set out in the PHA Constitution. More

Summit targets on-farm biosecurity

July 12, 2023

More than 60 representatives of agriculture industry peak bodies registered to attend a Queensland-first biosecurity summit specifically targeting on-farm biosecurity.

The summit, held at Brisbane’s RNA Showgrounds Tuesday 11 July 2023, sought to bring together plant and animal peak industry bodies to discuss how best to encourage the uptake of good biosecurity practices and planning.

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