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Tonight’s event is one of the best demonstrations possible of farmers caring for their land and wanting to leave it in a better state for future generations.

It’s an event I’m proud to support and champion loudly to as many New Zealanders as possible.

This year has seen tensions rise between farmers and your critics and this is likely to continue as we get closer to the election. Tonight I want to say a few words about how we can tackle this divide and tell our story.

It’s great to be here tonight celebrating two important milestones for the Orange Roughy fishery.

The first is Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification for several key orange roughy fisheries, and secondly to launch the book ‘Roughy on the Rise’ by Tim Pankhurst.

MSC certification is a great success and recognition for a fishery that was in real trouble in the early 1990s.

Thank you for the invitation to speak at today's forum in the great city of Brussels. What a fantastic opportunity to exchange ideas on the role agriculture plays in global sustainability.

It was a pleasure to hear from the previous speaker, Kofi Annan, given the wealth his experience brings to the conversation. I also look forward to hearing from my fellow speakers in the panel discussion on this vital issue.