Sutton gives personal promise on improving biosecurity

12.00pm

Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton has given farmers a personal promise that the Government will tighten up biosecurity precautions for shipping containers by the end of the year.

But Mr Sutton told a Federated Farmers meeting in Wellington today, that there was no "silver bullet" for stopping the import of pests and diseases on shipping containers.

"Throwing ever-increasing amounts of money at the problem cannot make our border impervious," he said in speech notes.

"Searching every container -- even if it were logistically possible, which it is not -- would not make it so.

"Who could guarantee to find every insect, every spore, every seed? Or round it up again if it flew out when the door was opened?"

New Zealand needed a smarter approach and he promised seacontainer biosecurity measures would be tightened up by the year's end.

"I realise clearly how important it is for the primary production sector not to be constantly battling new pests and diseases," said Mr Sutton, who also holds the agriculture, rural affairs, forestry, and trade portfolios.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has identified the 425,000 sea containers entering the country each year as a significant risk. A $1 million research study into sea freight risks was published on March 17, and members of the public given six weeks to comment on a discussion document proposing options for tighter controls.

Environmental organisations have called for an upgrade in shipping container inspections following the disclosure in the report that current searches miss 95 per cent of bugs inside them.

Forest and Bird has called for six-sided inspections of all containers, before they leave the port for unpacking, with MAF staff checking every container when it is unpacked.

But the proposed new measures gave a high profile to the idea of training non-MAF workers and accrediting them to provide an "extra protective layer" of interception and defence.

Costly measures, such as automated washing, fumigation and X-ray screening, were discounted as substitutes for 100 per cent risk profiling and increased biosecurity awareness.

Today, Mr Sutton said the work on containers would be "folded" into the Government's first Biosecurity Strategy, due to be released in June.

"This work is important," he said.

"There will be a rational and considered response from Government to it coming not too far down the track".

"Biosecurity is not something just Government officials or politicians do -- it's something all New Zealanders are responsible for and should be involved in," he said.

And the responsibility on citizens lay not only in protecting the border, but in working together to do whatever was necessary to eradicate pests and diseases that did enter the country.

Biosecurity measures were under the microscope because of the recent flurry of incursions by moths, ants, and mosquitos during the past month.

Particularly worrying was the latest find of asian gypsy moth in Hamilton, and Mr Sutton said he would do everything necessary to ensure MAF had the resources to eradicate it.

"Asian gypsy moth is a very serious incursion indeed -- this is a very serious pest with the potential to cause incredible damage throughout the country," he said.

- NZPA