Updated pest categorisation of Xylella fastidiosa

Following a request from the European Commission, the EFSA Plant Health Panel updated its pestcategorisation ofXylella fastidiosa, previously delivered as part of the pest risk assessment published in2015.X. fastidiosais a Gram-negative bacterium, responsible for various plant diseases, includingPierce’s disease, phony peach disease, citrus variegated chlorosis, olive quick decline syndrome, almondleaf scorch and various other leaf scorch diseases. The pathogen is endemic in the Americas and ispresent in Iran. In the EU, it is reported in southern Apulia in Italy, on the island of Corsica and in theProvence-Alpes-C^ote d’Azur region in France, as well as in the Autonomous region of Madrid, the provinceof Alicante and the Balearic Islands in Spain. The reported status is‘transient, under eradication’, exceptfor the Balearic Islands, Corsica and southern of Apulia, where the status is‘present with a restricteddistribution, under containment’. The pathogen is regulated under Council Directive 2000/29/EC andthrough emergency measures underDecision (EU) 2015/789(as amendedDecision (EU) 2017/2352).The pest could enter the EU via host plants for planting and via infectious insect vectors. The host rangeincludes hundreds of host species listed in the EFSA host plant database. In the EU, host plants are widelydistributed and climatic conditions are favourable for its establishment.X. fastidiosacan spread bymovement of host plants for planting and infectious insect vectors.X. fastidiosais known to cause severedirect damage to major crops including almonds, citrus, grapevines, olives, stone fruits and also foresttrees, landscape and ornamental trees, with high impacts. The criteria assessed by the Panel forconsideration as a potential Union quarantine pest are met (the pathogen is present in the EU, but it hasa restricted distribution and is under official control).X. fastidiosais not considered as a regulated non-quarantine pest (RNQP) as the pathogen may spread also via insect vector transmission.