Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/294 of 9 February 2026 amending Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 as regards the inclusion of Potato virus X (non-EU isolates) to the list of specified pests for the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Guatemala

THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION,

Having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union,

Having regard to Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 October 2016 on protective measures against pests of plants, amending Regulations (EU) No 228/2013, (EU) No 652/2014 and (EU) No 1143/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council and repealing Council Directives 69/464/EEC, 74/647/EEC, 93/85/EEC, 98/57/EC, 2000/29/EC, 2006/91/EC and 2007/33/EC (1), and in particular Article 42a(1) thereof,

Whereas:

(1) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 (2) establishes a derogation from Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 (3) concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Guatemala.

(2) On 9 October 2025, the European Food Safety Authority (‘the Authority’) published an addendum to its scientific opinion regarding the risk assessment of unrooted Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. plants from Guatemala (4), as new evidence confirmed the presence of Potato virus X (non-EU isolates) in Guatemala. Based on this, it included that virus as a pest relevant for the unrooted cuttings for planting of Petunia spp., Calibrachoa spp. and their hybrids produced in Guatemala.

(3) Non-EU isolates of Potato virus X should be thus included in the definition of the specified pests in Article 1, point (1), of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078.

(4) For reasons of phytosanitary protection of the Union territory, the respective provisions of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 concerning sampling, molecular testing and inspections of the specified plants should be amended accordingly to also address the risk of that virus.

(5) Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(6) The measures provided for in this Regulation are in accordance with the opinion of the of the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed,

HAS ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Amendment of Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078

Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 is amended as follows:

(2) in Article 3(4), the first subparagraph is replaced by the following: ‘Plants that are directly rooted or grown from the specified plants shall be kept separated from any other plant susceptible to the specified pests. They shall be subjected to official inspections at least once before they are moved for the first time out of the premises of the professional operator concerned and as close as possible to the time of their movement. Those inspections shall include, in case of suspicion of infection, sampling and molecular testing for Pepper golden mosaic virus, Pepper huasteco yellow vein virus, Potato virus X (non-EU isolates), Squash leaf curl virus and Tomato severe leaf curl virus.’;

Article 2

Entry into force

This Regulation shall enter into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Brussels, 9 February 2026.

For the Commission The President Ursula VON DER LEYEN

(1) OJ L 317, 23.11.2016, p. 4, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/2031/oj.

(2) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1078 of 2 June 2025 establishing a derogation from Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 concerning the introduction into the Union territory of unrooted cuttings for planting of Calibrachoa spp., Petunia spp. and their hybrids from Guatemala (OJ L, 2025/1078, 3.6.2025, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2025/1078/oj).

(3) Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/2072 of 28 November 2019 establishing uniform conditions for the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2016/2031 of the European Parliament and the Council, as regards protective measures against pests of plants, and repealing Commission Regulation (EC) No 690/2008 and amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2018/2019 (OJ L 319, 10.12.2019, p. 1, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2019/2072/oj).

(4) EFSA PLH Panel (EFSA Panel on Plant Health), 2024, Commodity risk assessment of Petunia spp. and Calibrachoa spp. unrooted cuttings from Guatemala, EFSA Journal, 2024; 22:e8544, https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2024.8544.