A nursery company and its director have been fined $42,500 for illegally removing 220 imported plants from quarantine after just one day. Elliott Wholesale Nursery Limited, registered as a Post Entry Quarantine (PEQ) facility with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), was found to be in violation of the Biosecurity Act. Imported plants are required to remain in quarantine for three months to protect New Zealand from potential pests and diseases.
Jeffrey Wayne Elliott, 65, and Elliott Wholesale Nursery Limited were sentenced in the Christchurch District Court on September 25 for one charge under the Biosecurity Act. Both had previously pleaded guilty following a successful prosecution by the MPI.
Gerald Anderson, MPI’s regional manager for investigations in the South, emphasized the importance of following quarantine regulations. “Mr. Elliott is highly experienced and knew the quarantine regulations. These rules are there for a reason – to protect New Zealand from any potential pests and diseases that could threaten our biosecurity,” he stated.
In September 2022, Elliott’s Wholesale Nursery imported 600 tissue cultures of Nandina domestica, an evergreen shrub from Australia. After unpacking, the plants were placed in the PEQ facility as required. However, after just one day, Elliott removed 220 of these plants and placed them in a non-PEQ area.
To evade detection and circumvent biosecurity rules, he replaced the imported plants with similar-looking domestic plants. He admitted to this act when questioned by an employee.
During an audit by an MPI inspector, the nursery passed inspection because the inspector believed the swapped plants were indeed the imported Nandina from Australia.
Although Elliott declined to participate in a formal interview with the MPI, he acknowledged to investigators that he was aware of his illegal actions. Fortunately, no pests or diseases were found on the plants that were removed from the quarantine facility.
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