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Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew is welcoming progress on improving food labelling, including consistent labelling of added fats and oils that are high in saturated fatty acids.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has welcomed yesterday’s opening of the Fonterra Ying Hub in Ying County, Shuozhou City, Shanxi Province, China.

“The Fonterra Ying Hub represents a significant investment in Ying County,” says Ms Goodhew.

“Once fully operational, the Hub will farm up to 30,000 cows, of which 16,000 will be milking cows.”

“Across the Hub’s three farms almost 400 local people have been employed and around 85 percent of the farm feed is sourced locally.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew has announced a two year extension for a scholarship programme that is deepening engagement between New Zealand and China, while boosting mutual understanding of each other’s food safety systems.

The scholarship programme was developed in partnership between New Zealand’s Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA). It was the first initiative under the Food Safety Cooperation Agreement signed between New Zealand and China in November 2013.

Food Safety and Associate Primary Industries Minister Jo Goodhew will travel to China today for bi-lateral meetings and to open a new Fonterra dairy facility in the Shanxi Province.

“The relationship between New Zealand and China has never been stronger, and it is crucial for our economy that we maintain that strong relationship in food safety,” says Mrs Goodhew.

Jane Lancaster has been appointed to the Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Board, Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew announced today. Ms Lancaster’s term began on 1 July 2016.

“Ms Lancaster will make a valuable contribution to the FSANZ Board with her background in food science, biotechnology, and strong governance experience. In particular, she has professional experience in food safety, food regulation, and the food industry,” says Mrs Goodhew.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew is welcoming the Food Safety Law Reform Bill having passed its first reading in Parliament last night, with unanimous support.

The Bill is the final step in implementing the Whey Protein Concentrate (WPC) Inquiry recommendations, in particular those which require legislative change.

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew is today congratulating Food Safety officials across New Zealand as the 1000th registration under the Food Act is celebrated.

“This is a stunning start under the new Food act, which came into effect on 1 March,” says Mrs Goodhew.

To celebrate the milestone, the Minister visited the 1000th registration, Columbus Coffee in Timaru, to congratulate the owner and staff.

E aku rangatira, tēnā koutou katoa. Ka nui te honore ki te mihi ki a koutou.

It is a pleasure to be here today to open this event, celebrating 20 years of the Food Treaty.

I want to use this opportunity to highlight the importance and success of the Food Treaty for both Australia and New Zealand, and also give my thoughts on some of the topics you will be hearing about today, including the future of food regulation.

Importance of trans-Tasman relationship and success of the Food Treaty

Food Safety Minister Jo Goodhew today acknowledged the 20th Anniversary of the Food Treaty between Australia and New Zealand at a conference in Wellington hosted by Food Standards Australia and New Zealand (FSANZ).

“The Food Treaty, implemented in 1996, was an important step towards enhancing trade between Australia and New Zealand, as part of Closer Economic Relations,” says Mrs Goodhew. 

“The Treaty has simplified two-way trade, and exporters on both sides now view each other’s markets as extensions of their domestic markets.

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.