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Bill English.
The Government is now backing a Green Party bill requiring country of origin labelling (CoOL) on single ingredient food such as fruit and meat.
Prime Minister Bill English says the change of heart is prompted by consumer preference as roundly discussed in National’s caucus. “It’s reflecting pretty strong consumer preferences.”
The Consumers’ Right to Know (Country of Origin of Food) Bill will have its first reading in parliament soon and will go to select committee after National agreed to support it.
It will require mandatory CoOL for fresh single ingredient foods such as meat, fruit, vegetables, nuts oils and flour.
English says National will decide after the select committee process whether to continue to support it into law.
Horticulture New Zealand has congratulated the government on backing the bill.
“Given that our recent survey showed more than 70% of NZers want mandatory CoOL for fresh fruit and vegetables, it is great to see the government listened to that,” Horticulture NZ chief executive Mike Chapman says.
A Hawke's Bay apple orchardist supports the Government's objective of doubling exports but says this won't happen in the horticulture sector unless there's a change in the process for bringing new plant material into the country.
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) says a new report projects strong export growth for New Zealand's horticulture sector highlights the industry's increasing contribution to the national economy.
Global trade wars and uncertain tariff regimes could play into the hands of many New Zealand exporters, according to Gareth Coleman ANZ’s Head of Trade & Supply Chain.
A new Indonesian school milk programme is expected to significantly increase the country's total dairy consumption, creating opportunities for New Zealand and other global dairy players.
Horticultural prices are set to remain elevated this year, reflecting the balance between demand in key export markets and an increase in supply.
A partnership between Canterbury milk processor Synlait and the world's largest food producer, Nestlé, has been celebrated with a visit to a North Canterbury farm by a group including senior staff from Synlait, the Ravensdown subsidiary EcoPond, and Nestlé's Switzerland head office.
Canterbury milk processor Synlait is blaming what it calls "a perfect storm" of setbacks for a big loss in its half year result for the six months ended January 31, 2026.
More of the same please, says Federated Farmers dairy chair Karl Dean when asked about who should succeed Miles Hurrell as Fonterra chief executive.
A Waikato farmer who set up a 'tinder' for cows - using artificial intelligence to find the perfect bull for each cow - days the first-year results are better than expected.
Fonterra says it's keeping an eye on the Middle East crisis and its implications for global supply chains.
The closure of the McCain processing plant and the recent announcement of 300 job losses at Wattie’s underscore the mounting pressure facing New Zealand’s manufacturing sector, Buy NZ Made says.
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