AIPH welcomes UN resolution proclaiming 2020 the International Year of Plant Health

The International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH) welcomes the UN’s proclamation that 2020 will be the International Year of Plant Health (IYPH). The proclamation was made by the UN General Assembly on 20^th December 2018 in Rome.

The International Year of Plant Health will help raise awareness, among the public and policy makers, of the importance of plant health and how this supports plans  to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The International Association of Horticultural Producers, which supports ornamentals growers worldwide, welcomes the UN’s initiative. “Tackling the spread of plant pests and disease is critical to ensure a vibrant and dynamic plant trade into the future. It is very much in the interest of growers, as well as the environment, that the best possible plant health systems are in place and consistently applied. That such a prestigious organisation recognises the importance of this area is very positive.” says Tim Briercliffe, AIPH Secretary General.

In the past five years the global ornamentals industry has faced an increasing threat from diseases such as Xylella fastidiosa with parts of Europe particularly affected. Ornamental plants and flowers are grown and traded around the world making plant health inescapably a global issue and the 2020 IYPH initiative will help raise international recognition and encourage a consolidated approach to protecting plants around the world.

The AIPH Ornamentals Production Committee is active in plant health regulations and information exchange on practices to improve biosecurity and considered a valued stakeholder in this area for the ornamentals industry. AIPH assists the industry by working to secure long term access to sustainable plant material around the world and protects trade by upholding high standards of biosecurity.

AIPH will be undertaking activities and holding events relating to plant health as part of the 2020 IYPH initiative which is spearheaded by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) and UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). 

Throughout the International Year of Plant Health AIPH, as an important stakeholder, will provide support, knowledge and expertise on plant health to its members, partners and the wider horticulture industry. For more information on AIPH activities visit www.aiph.org.