NICHOLSONS BIO-SECURITY POLICY
Nicholsons are dedicated to protecting our environment and all species within it, taking great care to avoid importing stock that may present a hazard to diversity within British wildlife and ecology.
We have updated our Biosecurity Policy, which can be read by clicking here…
Along with our updated Biosecurity Policy, we have also updated many of our processes and protocols, including Goods-in, Waste Management, Quarantine and Dispatch procedures. We are continually reassessing training methods to ensure all our staff are biosecurity aware and our teams remain vigilant whilst working both on and off-site. We regularly assess our own site and stock, and we conduct regular pest and disease checks on the surrounding area.
As part of our ongoing commitment to UK Biosecurity and in support of the Government’s 25 Year Environment Plan, we are also working toward becoming Plant Healthy certified. This Standard, in association with the HTA and Grown in Britain, is one of the many ways we are striving to ensure our environment and our products are protected and quality assured. We ensure traceability on all our plants and support UK growers wherever possible. We never buy from third party suppliers and we are currently in the process of re-auditing all our current suppliers to ensure their policies and procedures are in line with our own.
We pride ourselves on taking bold steps to ensure the plants we offer are not only the best quality but do not pose a threat to our environment. In 2016 we chose to stop trading in Buxus in a bid to reduce the spread of box blight and to ensure we provided long-lasting, quality plants. This decision included research and trials of potential alternatives so we could continue to offer our customers a full range of hedging and topiary options. And since 2018, in light of the increased Xylella risk, we critically consider all plants which are listed as potential host species, prior to ordering, and offer substitute species wherever possible.
USEFUL LINKS
www.gov.uk/guidance/issuing-plant-passports-to-trade-plants-in-the-eu
www.gov.uk/guidance/importing-trees-and-plants-to-england-and-wales-from-the-eu
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/25-year-environment-plan