Kia ora koutou and welcome to the June edition of MPI Organic News

We are full steam ahead developing the National Organic Standard and Organic Process Regulations. The MPI team working on the regulations has expertise in plant, wine, animal products, organics, food regulation, policy development, systems audit, and approvals. 

We are working closely with the Parliamentary Council Office to systematically review, re-draft, and further review each version of the draft regulations, clause by clause. The drafting involves continual cross-referencing against the proposals that Cabinet agreed to, to ensure the policy intent is reflected in the final regulations. In this process we frequently refer to content collected from the sector throughout earlier consultation.

The standard regulations are made up of seven parts and cover: General; Plants; Wild Harvest; Livestock; Aquaculture; Apiary; and Processed Products.  

The process regulations are made up of 10 parts and include: General; Operators: approvals and other requirements; Recognised entities; Provisions applying to both approval and recognition; Verification; Public register and operator information and records; Imports and Exports; Cost Recovery; Enforcement; and Exemptions.

The development of these regulations is nearing the final stage and we anticipate that the content will be used to support the EU negotiation process.

The National Organic Standard and Organic Process Regulations will be promulgated and published in late 2024.

Supplementary Notices

As the regulations are nearing final draft, work is now underway to develop the corresponding supplementary notices. We have engaged the Organic Association New Zealand technical working group to provide technical expertise to support the development of the notice content.   

We aim to start public consultation on the supplementary notices mid-July.

EU Negotiations

As many of you know, the EU requires that a bilateral treaty-level equivalence agreement is in place by 1 January 2027. This agreement would recognise New Zealand and EU organic production and control rules as equivalent, therefore maintaining existing market access conditions for New Zealand organic products exported to the EU. The alternative is that organic products exported to the EU must meet all EU organic rules.

The EU has indicated that the agreement should be reached by the end of 2024 to provide sufficient time to ratify the resulting treaty through the EU system in time for the 2027 deadline.

The Organic Products and Production Act (the Act) and its Regulations bring New Zealand into alignment with major organic markets such as the EU and the United States, by having domestic regulations covering organics production, and facilitates negotiating improved market access conditions.

Work to finalise the regulatory system and discussions for an equivalence agreement with the EU will be based on a comprehensive comparison of their regulations against the Act and any secondary legislation.

MPI recently met with counterparts in the EU to reiterate that securing a new equivalence agreement with the EU is a priority for New Zealand.  We also confirmed that we intend to complete the EU side-by-side process in two tranches, with the first tranche going across in late June. The second tranche is planned to be sent early September.

Future regulation development

Consultation on cost recovery proposals needs to occur after the National Organic Standard and Organic Process Regulations and notices have been promulgated and published.  A draft discussion paper is currently being prepared for cabinet approval later this calendar year for consultation in 2025. This is also likely to be when other regulations are considered, such as infringements and the national organic mark. 

Organic Export Requirement: China Overseas Market Access Requirements

Plant, Wine and Organic Assurance is preparing to publish an updated version of the Organic Export Requirement: China Overseas Market Access Requirements (OER: CN OMAR).  The amended OER: CN OMAR will replace the version issued on 19 September 2022, and clarifies the application of OER: CN OMAR to production and processing of organic products that are eligible for export to China and exporting organic product to China.

When OER: CN OMAR is reissued, the new version will be available on this MPI webpage: Requirement documents for exporting organics | NZ Government (mpi.govt.nz).  Plant, Wine and Organic Assurance will email all MPI registered organic exporters directly to let them know. 

Announcement on two new levies under the Food Act 2014

New Zealand Food Safety works with food businesses to ensure the food they grow, produce, and prepare is safe and suitable for everyone. The food industry, including food importers, are responsible for producing safe and suitable food, and must demonstrate that they meet legal requirements.

New Zealand’s food safety system is world leading and based on international best practice science and risk assessment.  However, our food profile has changed significantly since the Food Act was enacted in 2014. Recent food safety events and lessons from implementation of the Food Act emphasised the need for additional resourcing to ensure the system is more effective.

The Government has approved two new levies (a Food Importer levy, and Domestic Food Business levy), which will fund the delivery of core services provided by New Zealand Food Safety, that directly benefit registered food businesses and strengthen the overall food safety system. The levies are:

• A food importer levy (from 1 July 2024) of $67.50 applicable to those importing between 1-118,500kg of food; $0.00057 per kg of imported food applicable to those importing more than 118,500kg.
• A domestic food business levy (phased in from 1 July 2025), at a rate of $57.50 per site in year one; $86.25 per site in year two; $115 in year three.

These rates are exclusive of Good and Services Tax (GST). Information is available on the MPI website about the consultation process for these levies, and any updates.

If you have any questions, please email foodactlevies@mpi.govt.nz.