Any movement of plants across an international boundary legally must be accompanied by a Phytosanitary Certificate, issued on behalf of the government of the exporting country, to provide assurance that the import is healthy. That last statement, as it relates to cannas, is apparently quite false.
The experience of Keith Hayward of Hart Canna and holder of the UK National Canna Collection, as he recounts on his web site, is that if he wishes to send cannas overseas he must arrange three separate inspections by DEFRA inspectors (each of which must be paid for).
- The first is a visit to collect a soil sample to be taken away and analysed,
- The second is a growing season inspection to ensure that his plants are visually healthy,
- The third is an inspection of the particular items to be exported to ensure that they look clean and healthy, and are not carrying any “bugs”.
Similarly, if he wishes to import cannas from another country, these same inspections and certifications must be made in the exporting country. But apparently the inspections are not looking for canna diseases at all. They are looking for diseases of potatoes!
Keith goes on to recount that in 2009 Hart Canna imported a large consignment of cannas from Israel. They were accompanied by a Phytosanitary Certificate and so there must have been a soil test, a growing season inspection, and a visual inspection of the rhizomes. But when they grew them they discovered that they were all badly infected with canna virus disease, which would have been fully apparent to the Israeli Government inspector making the growing season inspection.
Keith submitted a formal complaint to DEFRA stating that the Phytosanitary Certificate had been wrongly issued. Back came the formal reply, stating “Not so, as Canna Virus is not a notifiable disease”. So it is quite OK for the Israeli Government inspector to see a field of diseased cannas, and still sign the certificate stating they are healthy!