Initiated by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) in 1998 as a pilot program, the CNCP recognizes nurseries that have the processes in place to effectively ensure the pest-free movement of nursery stock to the United States.

By international agreement, all plant material to be shipped outside of Canada must be inspected by Agriculture Canada prior to shipping to ensure the material is free of quarantine pests and regulated non-quarantine pests, and practically free* of common pests. Traditionally, phytosanitary certification has been based on a final inspection immediately prior to shipping.

The CNCP is a voluntary program for nurseries that ship plant material of Canadian or United States (US) origin to the US or within Canada.

Only eight nurseries across Canada currently accept the responsibilities associated with certification under CNCP.

K&C Silviculture Ltd. is currently the only forest seedling producer to hold certification.

We are responsible under the CNCP for ensuring that all plant material that enters our site is free of all quarantine and regulated non-quarantine pests, practically free of non-regulated pests, and in compliance with any pest or plant specific phytosanitary requirements of the CFIA and the USDA.

Detailed definitions are contained in the International Standards for Phytosanitary Measures (ISPM) publication number 5, though for practical purposes:

Quarantine pests are those of potential economic importance to the area endangered by them, and not yet present there or present but not widely distributed and officially controlled.

Regulated non-quarantine pests are those whose presence may cause an economically unacceptable impact, and are regulated in the territory into which they are being imported.

Non-regulated pests are those that can be expected to occur naturally in tolerable numbers. Shipments of plant material must not contain numbers in excess of those that can be expected to be consistent with good cultural and handling practices (*practically free).

The CNCP follows the principles of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9001/4, that applying a management system to our production process will result in the production of seedlings that consistently meet or exceed the parameters we have established in contract with our clients.

The systems approach used by the CNCP is partially based on the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) ISPM 14 Standard, "The Use of Integrated Measures in a Systems Approach for Pest Risk Management".

A systems based regional standard is also being developed by The North American Plant Protection Organization to regulate the trade in plant material between Canada, US and Mexico.

The CFIA established the requirements of the CNCP and conducts audits to verify that our seedlings meet the US phytosanitary standard and are free of quarantine pests and regulated non-quarantine pests.

All material obtained by us from outside sources must originate from another CNCP certified facility, be inspected by the CFIA at the time of entry, originate from a CFIA approved industry quality assurance program, or meet other specific conditions imposed by the CFIA at the time.

Additionally, all plant material must be examined by designated nursery staff before it can enter our production or shipping areas, reducing the risk of accidental contamination.

All plant material shipped under the CNCP must have been propagated by us during the previous growing period, or have been inspected by the CFIA within two weeks of shipping.

Under the CNCP, we are responsible for implementing sufficient procedures to ensure that the seedlings we ship meet the requirements of the CNCP and are free of pests of concern.

The CNCP requires the integration of different pest risk management measures, at least two of which act independently and cumulatively achieve the required level of phytosanitary protection.

The essentials of the CNCP consist of documenting production and pest management practices, determining pest prevalence during production and auditing and reviewing the system

Certification requires a significant time investment, both in development and ongoing follow up.

We have assembled a CNCP Quality Manual that clearly states how our phytosanitary management system will meet the CNCP mandate, and identifies pest management strategies in a written Pest Management Plan. The Manual outlines the administrative, pest management, and record keeping systems we have in place to ensure compliance with the CNCP.

The Manual must be reviewed and approved by the CFIA, and is rigorously used in both internal and external systems audits. Our Quality Manual is available for your examination should you wish to see it during a visit to the nursery

We are always pleased to welcome you to our site, and assure you a worthwhile trip.