'While we had 100 per cent x-ray screening, we had 100 per cent no fruit fly.”

That is the message from Horticulture New Zealand's communications manager Leigh Catley as the discovery of fruit fly in Auckland continues to worry growers across a number of industries.

Horticulture New Zealand's message comes after five Queensland fruit fly were discovered in Grey Lynn, Auckland. Photos: HortNZ.

And Leigh insists that when every piece of passenger luggage was x-rayed at the border, there was no sign of the troublesome insect.

'The 100 per cent screening programme,” she says, 'was about protecting New Zealand from a wide range of pests, not just of agriculture and horticulture, but also our unique native flora and fauna.”

Introduced in response to a foot and mouth disease outbreak in the UK, the practice was removed in 2012 and Horticulture NZ, Pipfruit New Zealand, Kiwifruit Vine Health and other industry organisations have been trying to encourage MPI to thoroughly review ‘pathways' from Australia ever since.

The discovery of an isolated population of Queensland Fruit Fly in Grey Lynn, Auckland has brought renewed calls from the horticultural industry for the reintroduction of 100 per cent screening processes at the borders.

'It has been obvious for some time that the Australians have lost control of Queensland fruit fly,” adds Leigh. 'We can't control what happens in Australia, but we can control what happens at our border.”

Horticulture New Zealand's communications manager Leigh Catley.

Horticulture NZ fully supports the Ministry for Primary Industries' response on the ground in Grey Lynn, saying: 'They are doing all they can and should do, and we are confident that the small population will be eradicated.

'We have welcomed news that the Ministry for Primary Industries has increased the proportion of bags x-rayed and put more dogs on the passenger pathway since the discovery last week.

'Once this response is over we, along with other industry bodies, will talk with them again about how we manage the increased risk of Queensland fruit fly from Australia on an ongoing basis.”

A fifth fruit has now been found, following the trapping on February 16 of a single male fruit fly. On February 20, a small isolated population of the fly was found in a home garden nearby in the same suburb.

This is the fourth time the insect has been found in northern New Zealand since 2012. In all previous cases a solitary fly was the only detection and no populations were found in the area.

On its website MPI says it is taking urgent action to eradicate this population and is confident of success given the resources and expertise at its disposal. The response team includes nine from the Bay of Plenty kiwifruit industry.