Miller Magazine Issue: 139 July 2021

92 ARTICLE MILLER / july 2021 in the Solution and created the Industry Advisory Group (IAG) to provide practical guidance and advice to the IPPC Secretariat on the design, development, and deployment of the ePhyto Solution as well as providing expertise re- garding the commercial implications of the Solution. The IAG membership includes includes representatives of: • Federation of Cocoa Commerce Limited • International Community of Breeders of Asexually Reproduced Ornamental and Fruit Varieties (CIOPORA) • International Grain Trade Coalition (IGTC) • International Seed Federation (ISF) • International Wood Products Association (IWPA) • Union Fleurs (International Flower Trade Association) • European Seed Association (ESA) • Europatat – European potato trade association • Freshfel Europe – European fresh fruit and vegeta- bles chain • National Alfalfa and Forage Association (NAFA) • The Global Express Association • International Cotton Advisory Committee Observers of the IAG include the Global Alliance on Trade Facilitation (GATF) that is resourced by the World Economic Forum (WEF). In 2018, the International Grain Trade Coalition (IGTC) was elected Chair of the Interna- tional Plant Protection Convention (IPPC)’s global Indus- try Advisory Group (IAG). The IAG welcomes the reactivity of many countries in the world to implement contingency plans that include acceptance of digital attachments, signatures, and cop- ies for trade related documents during the still ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The global pandemic has once more underlined the need for trade facilitation and using dig- italization to make plant product trade more crisis resil- ient and keep goods moving, despite limited staff capac- ity or arising health threats for workers. Nonetheless, the IAG is concerned, that many countries have taken a very individual path to digital certification, often with a deadline related to the prospective end of the emergency measures, which has already led to 1) a glob- al fragmentation with different often bilateral transmission solutions which create additional work and costs for oper- ators and National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs) 2) non-safe transmission systems vulnerable to fraud and 3) an exclusion of developing countries not yet connected to any electronic transmission systems, leading to the ex- clusion from global plant trade supply chains. In the last five years, the IAG has been able to suc- cessfully recruit, organize, and increase presence at several industry meetings, capture data, and present findings to bodies such as the IPPC, FAO, industry, gov- ernments, and trade associations. The IAG also assisted in the creation of marketing materials to promote and increase country adoption of the ePhyto Solution, as well as champion the global discussion on the Solution. IAG representatives are working to provide expertise