NZ Food Safety Boss on Balancing Speed and Risk in Approvals
Striking a balance between meeting the needs of industry to speed up approval time for products but on the other hand ensuring that risks are properly assessed.
Peni Naivaluvou, aged 64, was sentenced in the Papakura District Court last week on three charges under the Animal Products Act, following prosecution by New Zealand Food Safety.
He was fined $4,000 for the illegal slaughter of the animals, $2,000 for selling the animal meat and $2,000 for failing to comply with a notice of direction to stop the home kill operation.
Vincent Arbuckle, New Zealand Food Safety deputy director general says Naivaluvou’s home kill business was not registered as required under the Animal Products Act, meaning they were operating unlawfully and not subject to the food hygiene standards and meat inspection checks all registered meat processors meet.
“Those who try to avoid registration and operate outside New Zealand’s stringent food safety rules are taking unacceptable risks with consumer safety and putting our international reputation at risk,” Arbuckle says.
During an investigation (2022 to 2023), a covert Food Safety investigator bought a slaughtered pig from Naivaluvou.
Naivaluvou was then served a Notice of Direction under the Animal Products Act which prohibited him from killing or selling animals, but he ignored the directive and carried out additional sales to covert Food Safety investigators.
“Mr Naivaluvou told New Zealand Food Safety investigators he understood the requirements of the Notice of Direction but continued to operate as an illegal home kill business, slaughtering pigs and at least one chicken,” Arbuckle says.
"The majority of operators in New Zealand follow the rules because they want to make sure they are keeping their customers safe.
"When we find evidence of people deliberately flouting the law, we take action and there are consequences - as we’ve seen from the court’s response."
