Nathan Guy new Primary Industries Minister

Nathan GuyNathan Guy has been appointed as the new Primary Industries Minister as a result of the Prime Minister’s re-shuffle of Cabinet today.

David Carter, the current Minister for Primary Industries, will be the Government’s nominee for Speaker of the House following the departure of Dr Lockwood Smith.

The Prime Minister, John Key, took the opportunity presented by the change of speaker to look at the Cabinet line-up as a whole, “in the context of the Government’s priorities,” he said.

Primary Industries changes

Former farm manager, Nathan Guy, MP for Otaki, is the current Associate MiJo Goodhewnister for Primary Industries and was widely tipped as a favourite for the position. The 43 year old is a Massey University agriculture graduate who has also undertaken a number of study scholarships including a Kelloggs Rural Leadership course, a Winston Churchill Fellowship to the US and has also won a number of farming awards. From the meat industry perspective he is a former member of the Meat Research Advisory Committee and a former chairperson of Central Districts and Wairarapa’s New Zealand Beef Council, for which he was also deputy chairperson.  Jo Goodhew, member for Rangitata and a former nurse, will assist Guy in the Associate Minister position.

Food Safety

Nikki KayeFormer Food Safety Minister Kate Wilkinson will leave cabinet and will be replaced by 33 year old Auckland Central MP Nikki Kaye. Kaye will take up the portfolios for Food Safety, Youth Affairs and Civil Defence. She will also be Associate Education Minister, reflecting her work as chair of the education select committee.

Other

Dr Nick Smith will return to Cabinet in the Housing and Conservation portfolios and Chris Tremain is to be appointed to Local Government.

The changes will take effect on 31 January, when the Governor-General appoints the new Ministers and all the necessary paperwork will have been completed.

“The refreshed Ministerial team is ready to continue the Government’s focus on is four key priorities for this term  – responsibly managing the Government’s finances, building a more competitive and productive economy, delivering better public services within fiscal restraints and supporting the rebuilding of Christchurch,” says Key.

‘Momentous’ US/NZ food safety agreement signed

Ministry for Primary Industries deputy director-general standards Carol Barnao (left) and US Food and Drug Administration deputy commissioner for food Michael R Taylor sign a systems recognition agreement at a meeting in Washington DC.

Ministry for Primary Industries deputy director-general standards Carol Barnao (left) and US Food and Drug Administration deputy commissioner for food Michael R Taylor sign a systems recognition agreement at a meeting in Washington DC.

New Zealand this week became the first country in the world to sign an agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that recognises each other’s food safety systems as providing a comparable degree of food safety assurance.

Meat exporters will welcome the move, which will enable

streamlining of product to the market – New Zealand’s top destination for beef, fifth largest for venison and fourth largest for lamb – through the reduction of red tape and costs.

The Food Safety Systems Recognition Arrangement was signed at a meeting in Washington DC by delegations from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and FDA.

“This is momentous for MPI as it is the first time the FDA has recognised another country’s food safety system as comparable to its own,” says MPI deputy director-general standards, Carol Barnao.

“The arrangement with New Zealand is part of an overall strategy for strengthening the global food safety net through closer collaboration with regulators around the world, highlighted in FDA’s report Pathway to Global Product Safety and Quality,” FDA’s Deputy Commissioner for Food Michael R Taylor says.

Carole Barnao says both countries have done a huge amount of work ahead of this week’s signing.

“This process has included a comprehensive review of each country’s relevant laws and regulations, inspection programmes, response to food-related illness and outbreaks, compliance and enforcement and laboratory support.

“In one calendar year, FDA and New Zealand officials spent an intensive period of time together including visiting production plants, cold-store facilities, verifiers and accreditation authorities looking at the effectiveness of how each other’s preventative controls and verification systems worked.”

Barnao explains that both countries intend to use the agreement to lessen the potential regulatory burden for foods traded between the countries by removing unnecessary duplication of activities.

The agreement covers all foods and animal feeds regulated by the FDA, which equates to $1.5 billion of New Zealand’s current exports of primary products.

“Systems recognition agreements are very important for MPI to help us achieve one of our key strategic goals of maximising export opportunities through other countries’ recognition of the credibility of our food safety controls,” Barnao says.

First meat plant introduces new carcase inspections

In early September, Affco’s Imlay meat processing plant in Whanganui became the first plant to introduce the new ‘Ovine Post-Mortem Inspection’ regime.

The new  inspection regime involves company staff, rather than AsureQuality personnel, checking carcases for non-food safety or quality aspects (see Food NZ, December/January 2011). The move came after trials of the new system at the Affco plant proved successful and overseas authorities approved the equivalence of the new inspection regime.. Four other plants  – Alliance Smithfield, Silver Fern Farms Pareora, Riverlands Blenheim and Affco Manawatu – are expected to introduce the new system later this year.

AsureQuality meat inspectors will still be onsite to undertake food safety post-mortem inspections on all meat products. Final oversight of the products remains the responsibility of the Ministry of Primary Industries Verification vets on the plant.

This article appeared in Food New Zealand magazine (October/November 2012).