FOOD SUPPLY AROUND NZ In 1998, the seafood industry ceased fishing in the area to allow stocks to rebuild, and since then has conducted research surveys via NIWA and CSIRO to monitor the rebuild and to inform a new stock assessment this year. Deepwater Group chief executive George Clement says this stock has now rebuilt to almost 50% of the original biomass, and the Ministry of Primary Industries has approved an increase in the catch limit from this month. “The commercial catch limit here has been increased to 347 tonnes, allowing a very conservative harvest rate of only four orange roughy out of every 100 in the population,” Clement says. “This is yet another example of world class fisheries management where industry, government and scientists collaborate in the best long-term interests of the fishery.” The Government will reduce catch from the hake fishery HAK7 from 7700 tonnes to 5064 tonnes for the next two years. 36 OCTOBER 2017 Our growers are telling us that rain has been plentiful since March, there have been significant hail storms in various parts of the country, and the climate has not been as warm as it normally would be at the start of spring,” Horticulture NZ chief executive Mike Chapman says. “This is not only affecting the ability to harvest potatoes, cauliflower and leafy greens including lettuces, the hail has also damaged some crops which will affect the quality and the quantity of vegetables that will be available. Our growers use very sophisticated farming techniques to manage as many environmental factors as they can, but something like hail at the wrong time or rainfall of a metre more than previous years cannot always be mitigated.” Horticulture New Zealand is asking the government to look at a food security policy to ensure New Zealanders continue to have an adequate and affordable supply of fresh, healthy fruit and vegetables. Issues that need to be considered in that policy include protecting valuable growing land that allows for yearround food production, such as Pukekohe, and access to water. SEAFOOD After 19 years of stock rebuild, the ORH3B Puysegur area south of Stewart Island has been given the go-ahead to reopen for orange roughy fishing, Deepwater Group has announced. VEGETABLES Rain, hail and colder than normal weather will affect the supply of spring vegetables in New Zealand. “ POULTRY Direct Animal Action is urging the Waikato Regional Council to say no to Mainland Poultry’s application to build a massive industrial 800,000-chicken egg-laying facility at Orini. Spokeswoman Deirdre Sims says there has been a massive public outcry over factory farming and keeping animals in cages for cheap food production in New Zealand. “Kiwi consumers really don’t like factory farming and it’s beyond time these practices were banned in our country,” she says. Mainland, New Zealand’s largest egg producer, “will imprison 800,000 hens…in this mega hen hellhole,” Sims says. The news comes days after Foodstuffs - owner of New World, PAK’nSAVE and Four Square – announced it was joining Countdown in going fully cage-egg free. “Overseas, countries like Switzerland and Austria have already started to phase out colony cages and factory farming,” Sims says. “New Zealand is meant to be a world leader in animal welfare, but building a mega factory farm like this would actually set us behind more progressive nations and consumer trends in our own country.”
FT-oct17-eMag
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