The biggest ever fine handed down under the Animal Products Act of almost $226,000 was appropriate for offending on such a scale, the NZ Food Safety Authority said today.
In September, Sea Resources Company Ltd and Ian Kenneth William Pharaoh were charged each with three charges under theAct for having sold more than 1.5 tonnes of squid, despite knowing it had not been processed in accordance with the proper requirements.
In a long running defended hearing, both parties were found guilty on all counts.
In Wellington District Court on Friday, Sea Resources Company Limited was fined $60,000 on each charge and Mr Pharaoh was fined $15,000 on each charge. Both parties were also ordered to pay court costs of $130 on each charge.
The total of all fines and cost was $225,780.
NZFSA director (complaince and regulation) Geoff Allen said it was the first time this part of the Animals Products Act had been tested.
The fine would send a strong signal to the industry about the dangers and consequences of that sort of activity, Mr Allen said.
The court was told how the vessels that caught the squid were operating without the necessary registered risk management programmes and had landed and sold substantial quantities of squid in New Zealand.
This meant that the squid had an unknown safety status and eating them could pose a risk to health.
If the squid were to be exported there would be additional risks to the integrity of New Zealand as a trading partner, the court was told.
Large quantities of the illegally landed squid had been seized and destroyed.
