December 30, 2013

 
New Zealand pork industry to tackle concerns on imported raw meat 
 

Following its failed legal challenge to stop such product from entering the country, the New Zealand Pork Industry Board says it will work with the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) to allay any fears of biosecurity risks associated with imported raw pig meat.

The Supreme Court dismissed the board's appeal to stop the MPI allowing raw pig meat into the country through its import health standards for pork.

The board, which spent nearly NZD1.8 million (US$1.5 million) in legal fees, opposed these standards because they allowed countries with the viral disease Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome to export raw pig meat to New Zealand.

Board chairman Ian Carter said he was very disappointed with the decision and it was a blow for pig farmers just before Christmas.

He said the board was still coming to terms with the decision and its implications. The immediate focus was to have discussions with the MPI to devise strategies that would minimise any biosecurity risks associated with imported raw pig meat. Those discussions would continue into the New Year once people had returned from their holidays.

In order to minimise the biosecurity risks associated with imported raw pork products, Carter urged consumers to buy New Zealand-made pork products. He said pig farmers had to maintain high standards of biosecurity on their farms and dispose of waste pig meat appropriately.

Carter said it was still not clear what the decision meant for the long term viability of the industry's commercial sector. The volume of pig meat entering New Zealand had doubled under the previous import health standards and Carter believed consumers were able to utilise this product effectively while the risk was managed.

In its legal challenge, the board claimed the MPI director-general acted unlawfully and challenged the consultation process under the Biosecurity Act 1993. That challenge was unsuccessful in the High Court and in the Court of Appeal.

The Supreme Court, in a majority decision, found that the MPI director-general had responded lawfully and had met the consultation obligations contained within section 22 of the Biosecurity Act.

On the other hand, Chief Justice Sian Elias said the requirements of section 22 were not met because the chief technical officer had failed to consult before recommending the issue of the import health standards, as required under the act. Therefore, the import health standards were invalid.