M.I.A.
OPINION: The previous government spent too much during the Covid-19 pandemic, despite warnings from officials, according to a briefing released by the Treasury.
A host of new animal welfare regulations have been approved by the Government following delays due to COVID-19.
The new regulations relate to a wide variety of animals and procedures, and clarify who can perform significant surgical procedures on animals and in what circumstances.
The regulations will become law in August 2020. However, to provide time for people to understand their new obligations, the vast majority will have a delayed commencement and come into force on 9 May 2021.
"The majority of the regulations reflect current practice, but some raise the standards under which procedures can be performed. For example, some regulations, such as freeze branding dogs, require that pain relief be provided to the animal throughout the procedure," says Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) veterinarian and director for animal health and welfare Dr Chris Rodwell.
Most of the regulations have prosecutable offences which could result in fines and criminal convictions. Others are infringement offences, with a penalty fee attached.
"In all cases where there is a severe impact on an animal, a prosecution would be taken directly under the Animal Welfare Act, which has heftier penalties," says Rodwell.
NZPork has appointed Auckland-based Paul Bucknell as its new chair.
The Government claims to have delivered on its election promise to protect productive farmland from emissions trading scheme (ETS) but red meat farmers aren’t happy.
Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks could have a detrimental impact on any country's rural sector, as seen in the United Kingdom's 2000 outbreak that saw the compulsory slaughter of over six million animals.
The Ministry for the Environment is joining as a national award sponsor in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA from next year).
Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.
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