On Tuesday 25 July, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), the European Commission and 12 European countries launched a campaign to raise public awareness of phytosanitary dangers and risks so that people can help to preserve plant health by adopting best practices. The message of the PlantHealth4Life campaign is ‘keep plants healthy, protect life’.
It points out that “plants clean the air we breathe, make up 80% of the food we eat and help us fight climate change” and that “when plants are healthy, they provide habitats and food sources for numerous animal species, contributing to biodiversity”.
The aim is to involve citizens, gardeners and travellers in the fight against harmful organisms such as Xylella fastidiosa, which has already decimated millions of olive trees in Italy.
Travellers are advised not to buy plants from third countries online or bring them back in their luggage without a phytosanitary certificate.
The three-year campaign will run throughout the summer in the participating countries: Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Slovenia and the Czech Republic.
Belgium immediately announced that the Federal Public Service for Public Health, Food Chain Safety and the Environment was the main point of contact. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)