Staff updates

The Veterinary Medicines team would like to welcome Sylvia Ohneiser, who has joined the team as Adviser Vet Medicines on a secondment from the Ministry for Primary Industries’ (MPI) Animal Health Laboratory in Wallaceville. 

Sylvia has over 10 years’ experience in exotic disease diagnostics, quality assurance and outbreak preparedness in the virology team at the Wallaceville Laboratories. In her early career, she qualified as a veterinary nurse and after a move to Massey University she was part of the laboratory team at Mesynthes Ltd (now known as Aroa Biosurgery), involved in their work in soft-tissue regeneration. She also holds a master’s in veterinary studies obtained at Massey University during which she investigated Canine Parvovirus in New Zealand. We look forward to leveraging Sylvia’s experiences in the team.

Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR56)
The Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) wrapped up its 56th session in Santiago, Chile last week. Warren Hughes and Sarah Lester represented New Zealand Food Safety (NZFS). As part of the closing address, the CCPR chair and committee recognised and honoured Warren Hughes, for his dedicated service during his more than 21-year service to the committee. He was presented with a fan signed by the chair and many committee members.

The committee completed work to set new maximum residue levels (MRLs) and will send these to the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC) for adoption, along with amendments to the Codex Procedural Manual relevant to the work of CCPR. Additionally, the committee completed its work on the Guidelines for monitoring the purity and stability of reference materials and related stock solutions of pesticides during prolonged storage, which started in 2021, and submitted to CAC for adoption at Step 8.  New Zealand also participated in a side event explaining the importance of setting MRLs for environmental inhibitors to assist international trade and reduce greenhouse gases. Looking ahead, CCPR reiterated the importance of enhancing coordination between CCPR and the Joint FAO/WHO Meeting for Pesticide Residues (JMPR) and identified some steps to be taken to improve efficiency in the establishment of science based MRLs for pesticides.

Above: Dr Lifang Duan, the Vice-Chair, presenting Warren with a fan signed by Committee members to recognise Warren’s 21-year service to CCPR.

Upcoming workshops on self-assessable changes

The Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines (ACVM) team has been undertaking work to identify the chemistry and manufacturing variation changes that may be suitable for transitioning to self-assessable changes or notifications, thereby reducing the regulatory burden on registrants and supporting a more efficient and reliable supply of products to the market and end users.

ACVM will be hosting two online webinar workshops—one for registrants of veterinary medicines and one for agricultural chemicals. These sessions will provide an opportunity to share and discuss potential options for chemistry and manufacturing variation changes that ACVM has reviewed for each of these groups of products with registrants and other interested persons.

These online webinar workshops are scheduled for:

• Veterinary Medicines Self-Assessable Changes - Wednesday, 22 October, 9-11am.
• Agricultural Chemicals Self-Assessable Changes - Wednesday, 5 November, 10am-12pm.

For Animal and Plant Health NZ (APHANZ) members, the links to each session and the relevant discussion documents will be distributed through the organisation ahead of time.

For all other interested parties, please contact the relevant Team Manager to register your attendance. The session link and discussion documents will then be provided to you:

• Alison Weaver - Team Manager Assessments, Veterinary Medicines Alison.Weaver@mpi.govt.nz​​
• Amanda McKay - Team Manager Assessments, Agricultural Chemicals Amanda.Mckay@mpi.govt.nz

Inhibitor update

Industry engagement
Interest in the environmental inhibitor space remains strong. We have had interactions with 22 companies so far this year – evenly split across methane and nitrogen emissions reduction.  

Codex MRL guidance published
To provide an outline of the procedures and data requirements for the establishment of Codex MRLs for environmental inhibitors, MPI recently published a Guidance to establish a Codex Maximum Residue Limit for Environmental Inhibitors on the MPI Inhibitors webpage. 

Bromoform safety assessment
Bromoform, a known methane inhibitor found in Asparagopsis seaweed and manufactured synthetically, is the active ingredient in several methane mitigations in development. MPI commissioned and co-authored a detailed assessment of scientific publications and reports on bromoform and related substances that suggested bromoform does not pose a significant human cancer risk at the low doses required to reduce methane production in cattle. The paper was published in the Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology Journal. MPI has shared the article with food safety regulators in key markets. 

Efficacy guidance update
The methane inhibitor efficacy guidance document is currently being revised following a further round of consultation on the requirements for qualitative claims. The updated guidance will be published on the MPI Inhibitor webpage in October.  

AMR team update

New AMR e-learning module
MPI has received very positive feedback about the Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) e-learning module available on the Veterinary Council of New Zealand’s website. The module is free for New Zealand-registered veterinarians. We encourage you to share with any veterinarians in your team who would like to refresh their knowledge on AMR, antimicrobial stewardship, the rules around using antibiotics in New Zealand, and gain free continuing professional development.

The module only takes around 1 hour to complete and will provide an overview of the rules controlling antibiotic use in New Zealand and links to useful AMR resources. Please ensure that you fill in the feedback form upon completion, so that we can make the module even more user friendly and helpful to New Zealand veterinarians.

AMR Research Forum
The AMR team, in collaboration with the New Zealand Institute for Public Health and Forensic Science (PHF Science), will be hosting another lunchtime AMR Research Forum webinar on Tuesday 21 October. 

Register here for the webinar on Tuesday 21 October at 12-1pm.

Our two guest speakers are: 

• Ghader Bashiri, talking about the launch of the Aotearoa New Zealand AMR Resistant Network, and 
• Andrew Bowskill, who will share his experiences with the Australian AMR Resistance Network.

The AMR Research Forum provides a platform for AMR researchers to come together every second month to hear about AMR research in New Zealand across all sectors. The aim of the forum is to foster collaboration among AMR researchers and help inform research gaps and disseminate findings from existing research. 

World AMR Awareness Week Webinar 
It’s time to get ready for World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week (WAAW) from 18-24 November. To celebrate WAAW this year, join NZFS, New Zealand Veterinary Association, and Veterinary Council New Zealand for a webinar on best practices to reduce AMR in New Zealand.

Register here: Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams
Date & Time: 12-1pm, Monday 17 November
What to expect:

• A panel discussion with specialists discussing AMR in practise.
• Demonstration of MPI's new AMR surveillance dashboard.
• Announcement of the winner for the inaugural NZFS AMR Award.

Together, we can reduce AMR and protect public health.

ACVM applications approved in September 2025

Compliance update 

ACVM compliance received 34 reports of potential or confirmed non-compliant ACVM products and activities in September, and 289 reports have been received to date:

Agricultural chemicals application update

As of the end of September, there were: 

• 37 applications in the queue 
• 50 applications in appraisal 

In the queue, there are: 

• 20 new product applications (13 A-Type and 7 B-Type) 
• 13 new-use or use-change applications 
• 4 deviation application 

There are no chemistry and manufacturing variation applications in the queue. 

Ag-Chem advisers are currently focused on progressing a higher proportion of complex applications — such as those for new products, new uses, or changes to existing uses. As these applications require more time to assess, the rate at which advisers have capacity to pick up additional new applications from the queue is reduced. Whilst new applications continue to be submitted steadily each week, many chemistry and manufacturing variation applications are being appraised directly following the technical pre-screen (where accepted), with the screening adviser completing the appraisal to maintain efficiency.

Veterinary medicine application update

As of the end of September, there were: 

• 52 applications in the queue 
• 112 applications in appraisal (36 of these are C10-Reassessment applications)

In the queue, there are: 

• 16 new product applications (10 A-Type and 6 B-Type) 
• 12 new-use or use-change applications 
• 18 chemistry & manufacturing change applications
• 4 deviation application 
• 2 operating plans.

The Veterinary Medicines team has been operating at reduced capacity again this past month. New applications continue to be submitted steadily each week. The majority of these have been chemistry and manufacturing variation applications, which have been automatically accepted into the Vet Med queue.

Are you worried about an animal feed or a product used for animals?

MPI want to know about any concerns you have about feed or product quality.

If a veterinary medicine or animal feed doesn’t work as expected, causes side effects, or leads to unexpected outcomes, report it to MPI. Reporting adverse events helps protect animal welfare, food safety, and your farm’s productivity. It’s a simple step that makes a big difference!

Let MPI know as soon as you see any problems with feed or veterinary medicines. Reporting helps protect your animals, your business, and others in the sector. There is a dedicated form for animal feeds and another for all other animal health and therapeutic products. 

Find out how to report at: Adverse events with ACVMs | NZ Government or email: ACVM-AdverseEvents@mpi.govt.nz.

New organics legislation and public consultation

The Organics Act
The Organic Products and Production Act became law on 5 April 2023. It will help with developing new standards for organic products. It will set requirements for most businesses involved in the organic sector, from production through to sale. The purpose of the Act is to:

• increase consumer confidence in buying products labelled "organic";
• increase certainty for businesses claiming products as organic; and
• facilitate international trade in organic products.

The Regulations 
The Organic Standards Regulations 2025 and Organic Products and Production Regulations 2025 are now publicly available:   

• Organic Products and Production Regulations 2025
• Organic Standards Regulations 2025

The Organic Standards Regulations set out the minimum requirements that must be met for primary products to be labelled as ‘organic’. The standard is technical in nature and will require supplementary notices to give it full effect. It is divided into seven sections: general, livestock, plants, aquaculture, apiary, processing and handling, and inputs. 

The Products and Production Regulations set out the checks and balances necessary to ensure the standard is followed. Tools for ensuring organic integrity include diligent record keeping and regular communication and checks, including regular onsite visits from an independent verification body. 

Supplementary Notices
Under the new organics regulatory regime, the Act requires MPI to publish a register of acceptable and unacceptable inputs. These inputs will be set out in a new Inputs Notice for Generic Substances. The assessment, management, and use of inputs is a critical component of organic production and processing. The incorrect use of an input can affect the ability of a product to carry an organic claim and a product's eligibility to be exported.

The notice sets lists for substances that can be used in products such as cleaners and sanitisers, fertilisers and soil conditioners, and crop protection. Each substance listed is acceptable on the basis that its use complies with the circumstances and any conditions specified for each input.

Public consultation on the Organics Notice on inputs for generic substances is now open and we welcome your feedback through the submission process on the MPI website. 

Contact us

ACVM Team, Assurance, New Zealand Food Safety Haumaru Kai Aotearoa

Pastoral House, 25 The Terrace, PO Box 2526, Wellington 6140, New Zealand

Email approvals@mpi.govt.nz  

Website Agricultural compounds and veterinary medicines (ACVM) | Agriculture | NZ Government (mpi.govt.nz)

Subscribe to ‘Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines’ and ‘ACVM recalls’ on the Ministry for Primary Industries website to receive email updates on matters relating to ACVM.