Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew last week introduced the Food Safety Law Reform Bill to Parliament. The Bill is the final step in implementing the recommendations from the Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) Contamination Inquiry.

“We have made substantial progress implementing the WPC Inquiry recommendations through operational means. The final step is implementing the recommendations which require legislative change.

Science and Innovation Minister Steven Joyce and Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew today launched the New Zealand Food Safety Science and Research Centre at Massey University in Palmerston North.

Formed as a partnership between government, industry organisations and research institutions, the virtual centre aims to ensure New Zealand’s food safety system remains among the best in the world.

The official opening of Westland Milk Products’ new UHT plant in Rolleston is a significant boost for the Canterbury dairy industry and is a sign of the continuing shift to value-added products, says Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew. 

“It is important to celebrate good news stories such as this new UHT facility, which combined with the strong medium to long-term outlook for the sector, gives dairy farmers confidence that the period of low prices they are currently experiencing is only temporary,” Mrs Goodhew says.

Health Minister Jonathan Coleman and Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew welcome the Health Star Rating awareness campaign which starts this week.

“Promoting the Health Star Rating system is one of 22 initiatives in the Childhood Obesity Plan which was launched in October 2015,” says Dr Coleman.  

“Being overweight or obese is expected to overtake tobacco as the leading preventable risk to health in New Zealand in the next 12 months. We’re now one of the first OECD countries to have a target and a comprehensive plan.

The new food safety legislation, which comes into effect today, will help protect public health and sustain a strong food industry for years to come, says Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew.

“The Food Act 2014 will help us to future-proof the safety of our food, and to make compliance more efficient for businesses,” says Mrs Goodhew.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew today congratulated Fonterra on the opening of their new mozzarella plant at Fonterra’s Clandeboye site. The new plant will result in 25 new jobs and a doubling of Fonterra’s total mozzarella production to 50,000 metric tonnes per annum, over two plants.

Action is being taken by the Government to achieve further reductions in Campylobacter levels in chicken, says Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew.

“Stage one of the Ministry for Primary Industries’ Campylobacter Strategy has seen a 57% decrease in notified cases of Campylobacter-related foodborne illness in New Zealand since 2006,” says Mrs Goodhew.

New food safety regulations under the Food Act 2014 will allow businesses to keep their costs down by managing food safety well says Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew.

“These new regulations are designed to help businesses as well as consumers,” says Mrs Goodhew. “It will help us keep pace with changes in science and technology, and bring efficiencies for business.”

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed today’s release of the final report of the Dairy Capability Working Group.

“The Working Group found the food safety capability of New Zealand’s dairy sector is in good shape,” says Mrs Goodhew. “Looking forward, to maintain our reputation as a world class provider of safe and suitable food we now need to anticipate the changing face of food safety.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew welcomes the latest figures showing more than 600 products with Health Star Ratings are on supermarket shelves.

“Over half the products on shelves with the Health Star Rating labels are supermarket own brand products, which shows strong support from both manufacturers and retailers for this labelling system,” says Mrs Goodhew.

“This initiative is one of the ways we are working with the food industry to improve food labelling and make healthy choices easier for consumers.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew welcomes the decision by New Zealand Beverage Council (NZBC) to adopt the Health Star Ratings (HSR) on nearly all non-alcoholic beverages.

The NZBC, which produces 95 per cent of all juice and non-alcoholic beverages in New Zealand, has unanimously agreed to phase in the rating system.

“The HSR is a great way to help consumers make healthier choices quickly and easily when comparing similar packaged foods by taking the guesswork out of reading food and beverage labels,” says Mrs Goodhew.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew launched an online tool today that will help food businesses discover how they will be affected by the new Food Act 2014, which comes into force in March next year.

“Under the new Food Act there will be different rules for different businesses, depending on what they make or sell, and to who,” says Mrs Goodhew.

“We’ve created this online tool so that anyone providing or selling food can easily find out how the new food safety rules apply to them.”

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew today welcomed the introduction of a Bill to increase the data protection period for companies registering agricultural compounds and veterinary medicines in New Zealand.

“Access to the latest technologies and effective agricultural chemicals is essential for New Zealand’s primary industries,” says Mrs Goodhew. “We need these products to manage plant and animal pests and keep farm animals healthy.  

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew leaves for Vietnam today to meet with Vietnamese government and business leaders to promote our trade and agriculture relationship.

The trip ties in with the 40th anniversary of the bilateral relationship between New Zealand and Vietnam, and follows the signing of the Food Safety Cooperation Arrangement between both countries in March this year.

The adoption of a hemp seed food standard remains on the horizon, following work requested by the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Ministerial Forum earlier this year says Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew.

“New Zealand supports a standard allowing the sale of hemp seed food products, and I am hopeful that the Ministerial Forum will be able to assess the proposed hemp standard again early next year,” says Mrs Goodhew.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has today announced the Government’s decision to introduce a new policy around the sale of raw milk to consumers.

“Raw milk is a high risk food, particularly for children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with compromised immune systems,” says Mrs Goodhew.

“After extensive consultation and review, the Government decision will allow farmers to continue to sell raw milk directly to the public from the farm and via home deliveries.

Primary Industries Ministers Nathan Guy and Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew have welcomed the annual KPMG Agribusiness Agenda, which shows strong industry support for the Government priorities of strengthening biosecurity and adding value to exports.

“This annual report surveys over 100 leaders in the primary sector and is a valuable snapshot of industry views,” says Mr Guy.

“It’s no surprise to see biosecurity highlighted again as the number one issue by industry, as it has been my number one priority since becoming Minister.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed news that food safety is the focus of World Health Day today.

“April 7 is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) main annual advocacy event,” Mrs Goodhew says. “The choice of food safety as this year’s theme reflects the increasing consumer awareness globally of food safety. 

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed the consultation process for the Food Safety Law Reform Bill, which will address the recommendations from the Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) Contamination Inquiry.

“We have made substantial progress implementing the WPC Inquiry recommendations; however, some recommendations require legislative change,” Mrs Goodhew says.

“The Food Safety Law Reform Bill will address these recommendations and reinforce New Zealand’s reputation as a reliable supplier of safe and suitable food.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed an arrangement between New Zealand and Viet Nam to strengthen food safety cooperation.

The Food Safety Cooperation Arrangement between the Ministry for Primary Industries and Viet Nam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development aims to promote recognition and consistency between the regulatory systems of the two countries.

The Government is taking a criminal threat to contaminate food products very seriously, and is reassuring parents that our infant and other formulas are safe and that extra testing and security measures have been implemented as a further safeguard.

The New Zealand Police and the Ministry of Primary Industries announced today they have been working with a range of agencies to assess and respond to a threat to contaminate infant and other milk formula products in an apparent protest over the use of 1080 pest control.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed the release of the Dairy Traceability Working Group’s reports, which make recommendations on food supply chain traceability.

“The group was formed following a recommendation from the Government Inquiry into the Whey Protein Concentrate Contamination Incident, with a mandate to investigate dairy traceability,” Mrs Goodhew says.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed news that by the end of 2015 the Health Star rating system will be a common sight on our supermarket shelves.

The Health Star Rating labelling system was adopted by New Zealand in 2014 to enable consumers to better identify the nutritional value of packaged foods.

“Between the two main retailers alone, Foodstuffs and Progressives, more than 500 of their homebrand products will be on supermarket shelves with the Health Star rating by the end of 2015,” Mrs Goodhew says.