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Kia ora koutou and welcome to the September edition of MPI Organic News.
Spring has arrived, which means a busy time of year for many of you in the sector as you prepare for all the activities that come with the warmer months. We hope the weather across the motu is favourable and that you can enjoy the spring weather as things start to warm up.
We are pleased to report that Cabinet has agreed with the proposals of the National Organic Standard. To find out further information and next steps, please read below.
We’re happy to report that Cabinet has agreed to all regulation proposals for the National Organic Standard on Monday 4 September. We would like to thank all of you in the sector for your hard mahi contributing to the development of the Standard regulation proposals alongside New Zealand Food Safety.
This is an important step forward in the project as the regulation proposals will now go to Parliamentary Council Office for formal drafting into legislation. In parallel to the drafting of these regulations New Zealand Food Safety continues to work on the content for supplementary notices that form part of the Standard to be consulted on later this year.
The Cabinet Paper and Regulatory Impact Statement for the Process Regulations has now been proactively released. Both papers are available to view by clicking the links below.
Organic Products and Production Bill: Process Regulations Cabinet Paper
This is a reminder for Organic Exporters exporting to European markets (European Union, Great Britain, Switzerland, Norway)
Organic exporters exporting products under the Official Organic Assurance Programme (OOAP) to European markets (European Union, Great Britain, Switzerland, Norway) must obtain a Certificate of Inspection (COI) issued by the Ministry for Primary Industries prior to the departure of the consignment from New Zealand. Signing limits (deadlines) for COIs are set in the laws and regulations by the respective European market and specific requirements are outlined in the Overseas Market Access Requirements (OMARs).
Your Certificate of Inspection (COI) will need to be prepared through TRACES-NT and it is advised to allow some time for this process dependent on any further follow up required or resolution of errors.
21 September – The Organics Sector Advisory Council will be speaking in Wellington to discuss progress on organics the project. We will have further information on the topics discuss in next month’s edition.
New Zealand Food Safety works to ensure that food is safe to eat before consumers take it home
Here in Aotearoa New Zealand, we have a strong food safety system, but from time to time, issues can occur and food products need to be recalled. A food recall is the action taken to remove unsafe food from distribution and sale to protect consumers.
You can sign up to receive food recall alerts direct to your inbox from New Zealand Food Safety here. Watch our quick explainer to find out why and how foods are recalled, and what's done to protect consumer safety.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koYRj3YSri8
