Notice to Industry 34/2009 - Cold Storage is now available for some timber and timber related commodities

Notice to Industry 34/2009—Cold storage is now available for some timber and timber related commodities

What is the change?

This notice is to inform industry of an additional onshore cold storage treatment option for the following commodities:

• Bamboo articles (African and South East Asian countries only)
• Cane and rattan articles (African and South East Asian countries only)
• Wooden articles—Manufactured (African and South East Asian countries only)

Where goods imported under these cases have not had an acceptable offshore treatment and are subject to onshore treatment, Cold Storage (T9600) treatment of -18°C for seven days is now an option.

The amended import conditions for these commodities are available at AQIS's Import Conditions Database (ICON).

Details of the Cold Storage treatment

Cold Storage (T9600)
Store the consignment at -18°C for seven consecutive days starting when the core temperature of the consignment reaches -18°C. A core temperature of -18°C must be maintained over seven consecutive days.

Why was the change made?

The option for onshore cold storage was successfully trialled as an alternative treatment for commodities that have impervious coatings where methyl bromide is not suitable as per the AQIS Methyl Bromide Standard.

When will these conditions be implemented?

The above listed commodities can utilise the onshore Cold Storage (T9600) option effective immediately.

It is the responsibility of the importer to ensure that the information they have is up to date by checking regularly on ICON or contacting AQIS.

Further information

Current AQIS approved QAP Class 2.5: Quarantine temperature controlled storage facilities

For further information on the changes to the timber ICON cases please contact Timber and Timber Products National Coordination Centre in the AQIS Victorian Regional Office on phone +61 3 8318 6929 or email.