The kiwifruit pollen import process is to be reviewed following new information about how the PSA vine disease may have entered the country.
Primary Industries Minister David Carter said Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries' work tracing the potential entry points for PSA into New Zealand had identified pollen as one of several possible pathways.
"I have asked the Director-General of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry to commission a review of current pollen importing permits, how they were developed, the decision-making around them and whether any changes are needed in future," Mr Carter said.
"If there are improvements that can be made to the way import standards are set and administered, then I want to be confident that they are identified and put in place."
PSA, or Pseudomonas syringae pv actinadiae bacteria, invaded New Zealand kiwifruit orchards last year, and more than 900 orchards now known to have infected vines.
