Fruit nurseries

The fruit species subject to this certification scheme are:

• Castanea sativa Mill.
• Citrus L.
• Corylus avellana L.
• Cydonia oblonga Mill.
• Ficus carica L.
• Fortunella Swingle
• Fragaria L.
• Juglans regia L.
• Malus Mill.
• Olea europaea L.
• Pistacia vera L.
• Poncirus Raf.
• Prunus amygdalus Batsch, Prunus armeniaca L. Prunus avium L., Prunus cerasus L. Prunus domestica L., Prunus persica (L.) Batsch, Prunus salicina Lindley
• Pyrus L.
• Currants L.
• Rubus L.
• Vaccinium L.

The supplier is a professional operator (PO) professionally engaged in at least one of the following activities concerning propagating material or fruit plants of the above-mentioned genera and species: reproduction, production, protection or treatment, import and marketing.

The PO is obliged to ensure the absence of quarantine organisms and regulated non-quarantine organisms (NRLs) by means of self-monitoring and official phytosanitary control where applicable.

In addition, the PO must take samples, with a frequency corresponding to the occurrence of criticalities in the production cycles, for possible analyses to be carried out at laboratories recognised by the National Plant Protection Service.

The self-control checks that the plants produced/marketed are free from:

• Quarantine harmful organisms affecting the genus/species of interest;
• Regulated non-quarantine pests of the genus/species of interest listed in Annex 2, Parts 1, 2 and 3 of Legislative Decree no. 18/2021.

The supplier shall record and retain the results of all visual inspections and any sampling carried out during the last 3 years.

SUPPLIER'S OBLIGATIONS. In the case of CAC (Conformitas Agraria Communitatis) nursery material, the propagation material is guaranteed by the company that produced it.

The supplier is subject to the following obligations

1. to make himself personally available, or designate another technically trained person to maintain contact with the SFR;
2. to carry out visual inspections whenever necessary, or as instructed by SFR;
3. allow SFR officers free access to all premises of the farm and establishments, to carry out inspections or sampling, and to check plant health records/documentation;
4. identify and keep under control at least the following critical points of their production processes that influence the quality of vegetable planting material and related propagating material the quality of the propagating material and plants used to start the production process; the sowing, transplanting, potting and planting of propagating material and plants; the location and number of plants; the cultivation plan and method; general cultivation and phytosanitary protection care; harvesting, packaging, storage, transport; process hygiene;
5. put in place a traceability systemthat allows for a minimum period of three years the recording of the following information: information on the above-mentioned critical point control (point d); the provenance of the plants or other materials purchased; all occurrences of harmful organisms and all measures taken to prevent and combat them, including chemical treatments; any sampling and its results; other data whose recording is prescribed by the competent SFR;
6. ensuring that, during production, lots of propagating material remain separately identifiable;
7. implement all measures prescribed by the competent regional plant protection service.

The traceability information must be updated at least monthly for material transferred to other suppliers or to persons professionally engaged in plant production. For material transferred to other categories, a cumulative record may be made at the end of the marketing year.

Supplier's document for CAC material (Art. 61 of Legislative Decree no. 18 dd. 2/2/2021). The PO, under its own responsibility, guarantees that the above-mentioned material is free of both quarantine pests and regulated non-quarantine pests for the EU, and that it corresponds to the varietal and phytosanitary requirements indicated in Articles 49 and 50 of Legislative Decree 18/2021. This guarantee is attested by two documents accompanying the material: the plant passport and the supplier's document(which can be integrated into a single label).

CAC material is therefore marketed with a document called the 'supplier's document' for which the supplier is responsible.

The supplier's document integrated in the plant passport is coloured yellow and is printed in indelible ink in one of the official languages of the Union and is clearly visible and legible.

The responsible SFR remains at the disposal of users to verify the correct preparation of the passport and label documentation.