Farewell Emma De Landre

By John McDonald, National Biosecurity Manager

Greenlife Industry Australia (GIA) reluctantly farewells New South Wales and Northern Victoria Plant Protection Officer, Emma De Landre as she leaves GIA. Emma worked tirelessly to grow participation in the Nursery Industry Accreditation Scheme, Australia (NIASA) program, and achieved excellent results.  

Starting with GIA in February 2020, Emma put in her first public appearance as a Plant Protection Officer at the National Conference in Perth just as COVID-19 struck the country. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic and multiple lockdowns, Emma grew participation in the NIASA program in NSW by one-third (33%).

“NIASA accredited businesses, and those working towards accreditation, set a great example for the industry. Hopefully, this continues to grow,” says Emma. “I have very much enjoyed working with you all and no doubt will see many of you somewhere down the line in the future.”

Emma says highlights of her time with GIA include visiting production nurseries producing high quality plants and seeing how resilient and adaptable nursery people have been to all the changes brought about by bushfires, the COVID-19 pandemic, and floods.

“It has been a privilege to engage and support nursery people who grow plants because without producers we do not have a nursery industry,” says Emma.

Emma will be missed for her dedicated work ethic, technical knowledge, training, and education proficiency that have all advanced the understanding, skills, and resourcing of our growers across NSW and northern Victoria. Emma contributed to many project deliverables as part of the levy-funded ‘National biosecurity and sustainable plant production program’ (NY20001) team. Emma personally made a staggering 553 nursery visits, delivered 56 mini tech courses and four workshops, and conducted several NIASA audits. Emma also acted as the greenlife industry liaison for the November 2020 Serpentine leafminer (SLM) outbreak in NSW.

Emma has not only engaged with our growers, but she has also added to the technical knowledge and resources of industry through legacy outputs including Nursery Papers, Mini Technical Skills Courses, and the revamped NIASA Landscape Tree Stock Specification.  Emma will be hard to replace, and her contributions missed across the entire National Biosecurity and Sustainable Plant Production program.

GIA would like to thank Emma for her service to the greenlife industry and wish her all the best for her future.

Emma’s last day with GIA is Thursday 30 June 2022.

We are now searching for Emma’s replacement and will keep the industry informed regarding the appointment for this role. Interested applicants can find further details about this position here.

In the meantime, NSW and Northern Victorian growers seeking assistance can contact me, John McDonald, National Biosecurity Manager, on 0419 683 457 or john.mcdonald@greenlifeindustry.com.au.

The ‘National biosecurity and sustainable plant production program’ (NY20001) project is funded by Hort Innovation using nursery research and development levy and funds from the Australian Government.