ToBRFV is no longer considered a quarantine pest in the European Union. As of 1 January 2025, the status of ToBRFV changed to a Union-regulated non-quarantine pest (RNQP) with a zero-tolerance threshold, mandating specific controls for affected plants and seeds.
Key measures include:
- Seeds must either originate from certified pest-free regions or undergo testing to ensure they are virus-free. Testing of mother plants, rather than seeds, is allowed for small lots.
- Plants for planting must originate from pest-free regions or derive from tested seeds maintained under hygienic conditions.
- Capsicum annuum varieties resistant to ToBRFV are exempt from these measures.
Phytosanitary Certificates and Plant Passports are required for relevant plants to facilitate traceability.
The regulation also updates inspection frequencies for imported consignments based on origin. Sampling rates are set at 20% for all third-country consignments, increasing to 50% for those from Israel and 100% for China due to higher interception rates.
End of notification and eradication requirements
The ending of the eradication obligation for Tomato Brown Rugose Fruit Virus means that farms, where ToBRFV has been identified, will no longer be under surveillance. There is no longer a duty to share plans of action and there are no longer any requirements for the disposal of infected material. Orders imposed automatically expired on 1 January 2025. It will be up to the owner or user of an infected site to adopt an approach to control this virus. It is also no longer necessary to report a ToBRFV suspicion to the authorities.
The Dutch NVWA kept a scoreboard showing the number of infections starting from the outbreak in the Netherlands in 2019. At the last update, dated 1 March 2024, the counter stood at 54 infected greenhouse locations, in 18 municipalities.
Requirements for putting starting material into circulation
Requirements still apply after 1 January 2025 for the marketing of basic material of tomato and non-resistant pepper varieties. Seed lots may only be marketed and receive a plant passport within the European Union (EU) if they come from a country free of ToBRFV, or if the seed has been tested and found free of this virus. Inspection services monitor this. Testing takes place on an officially taken sample, so taking the sample for testing seeds must be done by an inspection service or by a company with NAL/LEEZ or BOOT accreditation. Young vegetable plants must come from seeds meeting the above conditions.
Pepper varieties are exempt from the above requirements if it has been made plausible that they are rugose-resistant to ToBRFV. An exception also applies to material that is not marketed, such as seeds for research or breeding purposes.
Import controls
The requirements also apply to the import of seeds from countries outside the EU (third countries). However, the required caption on the phytosanitary certificate is removed. Third countries exporting to the EU must ensure that they meet all requirements, including the RNQP requirements. If a phytosanitary certificate shows that the seed lot has been adequately tested for ToBRFV in a third country, it can be used for re-export.
For seed imports, samples will continue to be looked at, and 20% of the consignments after 1 January will be tested. For shipments with origin Israel, this will be 50%, and for shipments with origin China 100%. If ToBRFV is found, these countries will be notified.
Captured lots
A number of seed lots have been reported to the NVWA as suspicious, but have not yet been officially tested. However, these parties have already been established. From now on, these seed lots may be put back on the market. It is also possible to use this seed for research or breeding purposes. The marketing of this seed is subject to one condition: the lots are kept separate from contaminated seed lots. As with new seed lots, an official sampling or sampling under the supervision of the Inspection Service also applies and the test has produced a negative result.
Seed that has tested positive in an official test before or after 1 January 2025 may not be marketed, or offered for (re-)export, under any circumstances. However, it is possible to use these lots for breeding or research.
Owners of seed lots that already tested positive for ToBRFV in an official test before 1 January 2025 will be informed by the NVWA and Naktuinbouw.
Implementation of q-status
On 11 August 2020, in response to the spread of ToBRFV, the European Commission implemented emergency measures through Implementing Regulation (EU) 2020/1191 to prevent its introduction and spread within the EU. Despite these measures, ToBRFV continued to spread within the EU.