Thursday, 16 January 2020 11:12

Primary sector no more

Written by  Staff Reporters
Lain Jager. Lain Jager.

The Primary Sector Council believes it’s no longer appropriate to refer to “the primary sector”.

Read: Late last year, the Primary Sector Council unveiled its vision for the future of New Zealand’s primary industries.

Primary Sector Council (PSC) chair Lain Jager claims "the primary sector" conjures up images of volume-driven extractive commodity production, which was no longer reflective of how New Zealand farming and would fail to attract the people and investment needed for future success. 

“Reframing the sector as the ‘agriculture food and fibre sector of Aotearoa/New Zealand’ celebrates our high-value produce and the increasingly sophisticated farming processing and marketing systems and technologies we use.” 

Jager said New Zealand’s economic challenge and opportunity is to position it to meet the demand for high-value food and fibres. 

“Climate change, water scarcity and degradation, and pressure on biodiversity is the context for many of our consumers and our children. By owning our environmental responsibilities on carbon, water, biodiversity, we can lead the world in truly sustainable food and fibre production.”

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