The project is the first part of a joint assignment from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the Norwegian Environment Agency. VKM shall evaluate plant-growing media that carry a risk of introducing alien invasive organisms and evaluate the effectiveness of various risk-reducing measures.

This assignment is a part of the government's action plan to control harmful invasive organisms.

The assignment

VKM will, among other things, identify:

• Which plant pests associated with soil or other growing media currently used in plant production in European countries are most likely to establish and spread in Norway.
• Which plants, plant categories, or cultivation methods are most likely to introduce the identified plant pests to Norwa.
• Which potential measures will reduce risk.

VKM will identify risk-reducing measures, evaluate their effectiveness and feasibility, and determine if measures already implemented in Norway are sufficient to prevent the introduction of plant pests through soil and other growing media during the import of plants and propagation materials from Europe.

The project team

Initially, VKM will create a project plan outlining how the work will be executed. The project team for the project plan consists of:
- May-Guri Sæthre, Chair and Scientific leader of VKM’s Panel on Plant Health
- Paal Krokene, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Erik Joner, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Line Nybakken,VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Jorunn Bøvre, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Johan Stenberg, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Lawrence Kirkendall, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Mogens Nicolaisen, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Beatrix Alsanius, Member of VKM’s Panel on Plant Health
- Christer Magnusson, Member of VKM’s Panel on Plant Health
- Sandra Wright, VKM member, Panel on Plant Health
- Bjørn Arild Hatteland, external expert, NIBIO
- Kristine Westergaard, external expert, NTNU
- Daniel Flø, Project manager, VKM Secretariat

The project team will expand as the main project work begins. The project will acquire approval from VKM's Panel on Plant Health. The assessment is scheduled to be published at the end of 2024.