It was commissioned after a fruit fly discovery in April to examine the adequacy of the border defence relative to rising passenger volumes at ports and how NZ is responding to the changing nature of mail received.
The adequacy of international visitor awareness campaigns and domestic awareness were also examined.
It found the biosecurity system is generally robust but reviewer Rob Delane recommended new scanning technology be installed.
That includes wider use of computed tomography (CT) scanning for hand luggage and real time tomography (RTT) scanners for suitcases.
Tomography scanning lets operators see sections of an object. The latest versions process images in real time for rapid risk assessment by customs staff.
The International Mail Centre (IMC) that processes 40 million items a year at Auckland Airport came in for some criticism.
It is a high risk area for hitchhiker pests such as the brown marmorated stink bug but is no longer fit for purpose though no date has been set for a new centre to be built, Delane said.
It is outmoded with limited space for scanning improvements to be made.
Delane urged the Ministry for Primary Industries to harden its Biosecurity First focus at the IMC with the impact of a biosecurity breach there far greater than the business impact on mail and freight companies having to accommodate improvements in biosecurity systems.
However, Delane took some comfort the centre is a lower biosecurity risk, partly because online shopping is the main generator of parcel traffic.
Airline and airport security around luggage and freight scanning have lowered the risk of threats not being detected.
MPI director-general Ray Smith said he will be making a number of recommendations to Biosecurity NZ based on the report’s findings.
“The findings support our work to develop new baggage scanning technology, recommending we move quickly to use RTT to scan all baggage at Auckland Airport.
“We are well advanced in developing a prototype scanner to automatically detect goods posing biosecurity risks.”
A prototype of the system detected an egg in a suitcase shortly after installation in early April.
MPI is in discussion with the mail centre’s property owners to upgrade the facilities there.
Delane maintained there is also an opportunity to communicate the importance of biosecurity to tourists once they leave the airport, using smartphone apps and digital technology.
Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor said some of the recommendations will take time and investment in new technologies.
Issues with the mail centre were long standing and he intends to again discuss with MPI officials how to better upgrade it.
