Vegetable growing at risk
Horticulture New Zealand says the country’s ability to provide fresh, healthy vegetables is at risk unless the Government makes growing them a permitted activity.
Vegetables NZ chair, John Murphy, says it’s great to be in a period where vegetable supply is good, because growers have planted more and the weather is supporting great spring growth.
“However, growers remain under enormous pressure due to increasing input costs, mounting regulation, skilled labour shortages, and a business environment that does not support expansion,” says Murphy.
He says that if these pressures cannot be reversed, New Zealanders will not be able to enjoy fresh, healthy vegetables at reasonable prices in the future, because more growers will exit the industry, thus reducing supply.
“What’s more, because the industry has not been able to expand to cater for increased demand, New Zealand food security has been compromised,” Murphy says.
“This means that it would only take one big adverse weather event in one of our major growing regions to create significant vegetable shortages in supermarkets for many months.”
He says Vegetables NZ has already engaged the incoming Government on the challenges facing the sector.
“The incoming politicians whom we’ve spoken to are very positive and want to support our industry to expand, so we can provide New Zealanders with fresh, healthy food at reasonable prices. However, there are a lot of fundamentals to get right to return our industry to growth and prosperity,” Murphy concludes.
