Demand for food safety

To boost its offering to the hort sector, Hamiltonbased Hill Laboratories has signed a joint working partnership agreement with Merieux Nutri- Sciences, global leaders in food safety, quality and sustainability.

Hill Laboratories chief executive Dr Jonathan Hill says his company already does a significant amount of testing for the horticultural sector.

“The ability to now offer our packhouse customers and other horticultural clients this top-quality, independent auditing service gives us another string in our bow,” he says.

A growing number of retailers and manufacturers worldwide require food suppliers to demonstrate their commitment to food safety and quality standards through global food safety programmes, such as those benchmarked and recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI).

Merieux NutriSciences provides certification and food auditing services that confirm the highest safety and quality levels across the whole food value chain. The company is accredited through the Joint Accreditation System of Australia and New Zealand (JAS-ANZ).

Hill says the partnership was established in response to increased New Zealand customer demand for high-quality food safety auditing services for export.

“Partnering with Merieux NutriSciences allows us to offer our customers a world-class independent auditing service alongside our existing world-class analytical services.

“Hill Labs’ expertise in food, agricultural and environmental testing perfectly complements Merieux NutriSciences’ expertise in auditing Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) programmes.

“The end result is that we will be better able to support our customers’ full suite of export certification compliance needs.”

Both Hill Laboratories and Mérieux NutriSciences are family- owned: Hill says the two companies share very similar values, especially the shared focus on quality.

“Merieux Nutri- Sciences approached Hill Laboratories as its preferred New Zealand partner. Both of our companies have a shared ambition to help local food growers and manufacturers to meet international food safety and quality standards,” says Hill.

Merieux NutriSciences Australia managing director Kevin Goddaer says the strategic partnership with Hill Laboratories expands its auditing services for the first time to New Zealand.

“This allows us to better serve the growing Pacific market.”