Philippines Approves Heat Treatment Certificates in Lieu of Phytos
The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) recently announced that the national plant protection organization of the Philippines will, as of June 1st, accept heat treatment certificates (HTC) in lieu of Gov. of Canada phytosanitary certificates (phytos). HTC can only be issued by facilities registered under the Canadian HT Program run by the Canadian Lumber Standards Accreditation Board (CLSAB) under the auspices of CFIA.
This development should relieve burden and cost for both industry and CFIA by minimizing the amount of paperwork and official inspections. For specific operational details on how the new system will work please click this LINK.
The Philippines is a major customer for Canadian softwood lumber exporters and previously up to 600 phytos annually were issued by CFIA. Facilitation of the new arrangement occurred after Filipino plant health authorities visited BC in November 2023 to audit the Canadian HT program. Officials visited registered kilns and spoke with CLSAB, COFI and CMSA grading agency reps and officials from CFIA. The visit was sponsored by Canada Wood with funding support from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).
The Canada Wood Group maintains a dedicated website that provides current information on phytosanitary issues relevant to the Canadian forest industry. Access to this information is complimentary. If you are interested in utilizing this resource, please sign up at Canada Wood Phytosanitary Information.