Biosecurity award for M. bovis work
A small company which mobilised veterinarians around the country to deal with Mycoplasma bovis was one of the winners in this year's Biosecurity Awards, held at Parliament.
The Ministry for Primary Industries is seeking public views on possible changes to the Horticulture Export Authority (HEA) Act.
The HEA provides a voluntary mechanism for horticulture industries to jointly fund and organise activities that support successful exporting, such as quality assurance, promotion and marketing.
Export earnings for industries currently using the HEA totalled $264.6 million in 2012.
MPI is seeking feedback on some specific issues identified in consultation with the sector.
"A recent independent review showed that the HEA remains popular with small export-based horticultural industries," says MPI forestry and plant sector policy manager Lisa Winthrop.
"But we have identified some opportunities to make the HEA more functional, useful, effective and efficient, and possibly reduce compliance costs, as well as updating some provisions."
The four key areas where feedback is sought are: enabling different markets to have different programmes; clarifying entry and exit procedures; questioning whether licence application assessment criteria are adequate; and questioning whether enforcement and penalty provisions are adequate.
The consultation will be open for public submissions until 5pm on Friday, February 15, 2013.
For further information, see
http://www.mpi.govt.nz/news-resources/consultations/review-of-the-nz-horticulture-export-authority-act
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Two major red meat sector projects are getting up to a combined $1.7 million in funding from the New Zealand Meat Board (NZMB).
Angus Barr and Tara Dwyer of The Wandle, Lone Star Farms in Strath Taieri have been named the Regional Supreme Winners at the Otago Ballance Farm Environment Awards in Dunedin.
OPINION: The distress that the politicians and bureaucrats are causing to the people of Wairoa and the wider Tairāwhiti is unforgivable.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.