The International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) is a 1951

multilateral treaty A multilateral treaty or multilateral agreement is a treaty to which two or more sovereign states are parties. Each party owes the same obligations to all other parties, except to the extent that they have stated reservation (law), reservations. Ex ...

overseen by the United Nations

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security. Its Latin motto, , translates ...

that aims to secure coordinated, effective action to prevent and to control the introduction and spread of pests of plants and plant products. The Convention extends beyond the protection of cultivated plants to the protection of natural flora and plant products. It also takes into consideration both direct and indirect damage by pests, so it includes

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, growing where it conflicts with human preferences, needs, or goals.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. Pla ...

s. IPPC promulgates International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPMs). The Convention created a governing body consisting of each party, known as the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures, which oversees the implementation of the convention (see ). As of August 2017, the convention has 183 parties, being 180

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and the

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Niue Niue is a self-governing island country in free association with New Zealand. It is situated in the South Pacific Ocean and is part of Polynesia, and predominantly inhabited by Polynesians. One of the world's largest coral islands, Niue is c ...

, and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. The convention is recognized by the World Trade Organization's (WTO)

Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures The Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, also known as the SPS Agreement or just SPS, is an international treaty of the World Trade Organization (WTO). It was negotiated during the Uruguay Round of the General Agree ...

(the SPS Agreement) as the only international standard setting body for plant health.

Goals

While the IPPC's primary focus is on plants and plant products moving in international trade, the convention also covers

research Research is creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge. It involves the collection, organization, and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness to ...

materials,

biological control Biological control or biocontrol is a method of controlling pests, whether pest animals such as insects and mites, weeds, or pathogens affecting animals or plants by using other organisms. It relies on predation, parasitism, herbivory, or o ...

organisms, germplasm banks, containment facilities, food aid, emergency aid and anything else that can act as a vector for the spread of plant pests – for example, containers, packaging materials, soil, vehicles, vessels and machinery. The IPPC was created by member countries of the

(UN FAO). The IPPC places emphasis on three core areas: international standard setting, information exchange and capacity development for the implementation of the IPPC and associated international phytosanitary standards. The Secretariat of the IPPC is housed at FAO headquarters in Rome, Italy, and is responsible for the coordination of core activities under the IPPC work program. In recent years the Commission of Phytosanitary Measures of the IPPC has developed a strategic framework with the objectives of: * protecting sustainable agriculture and enhancing global food security through the prevention of pest spread; * protecting the environment, forests and biodiversity from plant pests; * facilitating economic and trade development through the promotion of harmonized scientifically based phytosanitary measures, and: * developing phytosanitary capacity for members to accomplish the preceding three objectives. By focusing the convention's efforts on these objectives, the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures of the IPPC intends to: * protect farmers from economically devastating pest and disease

outbreaks In epidemiology, an outbreak is a sudden increase in occurrences of a disease when cases are in excess of normal expectancy for the location or season. It may affect a small and localized group or impact upon thousands of people across an entire ...

. * protect the environment from the loss of species diversity. * protect ecosystems from the loss of viability and function as a result of pest invasions. * protect industries and consumers from the costs of pest control or eradication. * facilitate trade through International Standards that regulate the safe movements of plants and plant products. * protect livelihoods and food security by preventing the entry and spread of new pests of plants into a country.

Regional Plant Protection Organizations

Under the IPPC are Regional Plant Protection Organizations (RPPO). These are

intergovernmental organization Globalization is social change associated with increased connectivity among societies and their elements and the explosive evolution of transportation and telecommunication technologies to facilitate international cultural and economic exchange. ...

s responsible for cooperation in plant protection. There are the following organizations recognized by and working under the IPPC: * Asia and Pacific Plant Protection Commission (APPPC) * Caribbean Agricultural Health and Food Safety Agency (CAHFSA) *

Andean Community The Andean Community (, CAN) is a free trade area with the objective of creating a customs union comprising the South American countries (Andean states) of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru. The trade bloc was called the Andean Pact until 1 ...

(''Comunidad Andina'', CAN) * Plant Health Committee of the Southern Cone (, COSAVE) *

European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization The European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO) is an Intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental organisation responsible for European cooperation in plant protection in the European and Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean ...

(EPPO) * Inter-African Phytosanitary Council (IAPSC) * Near East Plant Protection Organization (NEPPO) * North American Plant Protection Organization (NAPPO) * International Regional Organization for Agricultural Health (', OIRSA) * Pacific Plant Protection Organization (PPPO) Under the IPPC, the role of an RPPO is to: *function as the coordinating bodies in the areas covered, shall participate in various activities to achieve the objectives of this Convention and, where appropriate, shall gather and disseminate information. *cooperate with the Secretary in achieving the objectives of the Convention and, where appropriate, cooperate with the Secretary and the Commission in developing international standards. *hold regular Technical Consultations of representatives of regional plant protection organizations to: **promote the development and use of relevant international standards for phytosanitary measures; and **encourage inter-regional cooperation in promoting harmonized phytosanitary measures for controlling pests and in preventing their spread and/or introduction.

International Plant Health Conference

The first annual International Plant Health Conference was organized by the FAO and set to be hosted by the

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28 June–July 1, 2021. However, on 9 February 2021 it was cancelled due to the ongoing pandemic.

Commission on Phytosanitary Measures

The fifteenth session of the Commission on Phytosanitary Measures (CPM) was held 16 March, 18 March and 1 April 2021 virtually over Zoom.

ePhyto

The IPPC created and administers the ePhyto system, the international electronic phytosanitary certificate standard. ePhyto has been very widely adopted three million ePhyto certificates have been exchanged between exporting and importing partner

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Activities

IPPC convenes consultative committees and forms

international standard An international standard is a technical standard developed by one or more international standards organizations. International standards are available for consideration and use worldwide. The most prominent such organization is the International O ...

s. This includes standards on food irradiation. Haack ''et al.'', 2014 find the IPPC has been successful in reducing wood boring beetle infestation of

wood packaging Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin tha ...

material in

shipment Freight transport, also referred to as freight forwarding, is the physical process of transporting commodities and merchandise goods and cargo. The term shipping originally referred to transport by sea but in American English, it has been exte ...

s entering the United States. : : : : :These reviews cite this research. : :

References

External links