Sanity, based on sound science, has prevailed says Federated Farmers after the Government confirmed it would no longer be permitting imports of products containing animal manure.
The decision follows a Ministry for Primary Industries' investigation which discovered imported compost from the Netherlands, intended for mushroom growing, contained animal manure.
"Thisis the right decision. Federated Farmers made a strong submission earlier in the year against these imports," says Federated Farmers' biosecurity spokesperson Guy Wigley.
MPI had put the import on hold until it developed a new import health standard to cover animal-based manure.
"The initial measures outlined in the proposed import health standard were simply not robust enough or science based in our opinion, and this presented a biosecurity risk.
