Bikinis in cowshed
OPINION: An animal activist organisation is calling for an investigation into the use of dairy cows in sexuallly explicit content posted on social media and adult entertainment subscription site OnlyFans.
MPI says it will do more inspecting of imported ovine germplasm to meet industry concerns.
A group of sheep breeders are calling on MPI to reverse the 2016 relaxation of the rules on importation of sheep and goat germplasm.
MPI says it has also tried to persuade Australian authorities that their concerns over NZ’s ovine genetics exports are unfounded.
In a statement, MPI says it is confident of the biosecurity measures in place.
“MPI takes biosecurity extremely seriously and our Import Health Standards for the importation of sheep and goat semen and embryos are based on, or exceed, top international standards.”
MPI says it had listened to the concerns of the farming sector regarding pelletised sheep semen.
“As a result, we’re planning additional inspections of consignments to ensure that certification, documentation and packaging meet the Import Health Standard (IHS).”
MPI says the new IHS had been in response to a long-standing industry request for an improvement in sheep and goat genetics in NZ, for both milking and meat purposes. The ministry claims this was widely consulted on and developed with input from industry.
“In addition, MPI did rigorous risk analysis and found the risks of introduction of diseases via germplasm could be appropriately managed. The only country that disagreed was Australia, who subsequently imposed import restrictions on ovine germplasm from New Zealand,” it says.
“This was due to perceptions of the risk of spreading scrapie. We have presented Australia with scientific evidence to reduce their concerns, however the restrictions remain in place.”
MPI denies increased risk from pelletised semen. It says pellets had been imported and used in NZ for decades, and a 2013 risk assessment for pellets concluded the risk was “appropriately managed” by the requirements of the IHS.
The IHS can only be used if the country of export has been approved by MPI in a rigorous process, including assessing their systems and their animal disease status. MPI noted that none of the four countries now exporting ovine germplasm to NZ has foot and mouth disease.
Like many manufacturers around the world, European agricultural machinery and tractor manufacturers are currently operating in a difficult market environment. But they are heading to the world’s largest agricultural machinery event in Hanover next month with a degree of cautious optimism.
Established in 2021, the John Deere Technician of the Year Awards champion the important contribution parts and service technicians make to the Australian and New Zealand agriculture, construction and forestry industries.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling on farmers from all regions to take part in the final season of the Sheep Poo Study aiming to build a clearer picture of how facial eczema (FE) affects farms across New Zealand.
New Zealand is closer to eradicating bovine TB than ever before, but possums remain a threat, says Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has joined the debate around the proposed sale of Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses, demanding answers from the co-operative around its milk supply deal with the buyer, Lactalis.
The ACT Party says media reports that global dairy giant Nestle has withdrawn from the Dairy Methane Action Alliance shows why New Zealand needs to rethink its approach to climate.
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