Thursday, 22 November 2012 11:32

Views sought on HEA changes

Written by Pamela Tipa

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The Ministry for Primary Industries is seeking public views on possible changes to the Horticulture Export Authority (HEA) Act.

The HEA provides a voluntary mechanism for horticulture industries to jointly fund and organise activities that support successful exporting, such as quality assurance, promotion and marketing.

Export earnings for industries currently using the HEA totalled $264.6 million in 2012.

MPI is seeking feedback on some specific issues identified in consultation with the sector.

"A recent independent review showed that the HEA remains popular with small export-based horticultural industries," says MPI forestry and plant sector policy manager Lisa Winthrop.

"But we have identified some opportunities to make the HEA more functional, useful, effective and efficient, and possibly reduce compliance costs, as well as updating some provisions."

The four key areas where feedback is sought are: enabling different markets to have different programmes; clarifying entry and exit procedures; questioning whether licence application assessment criteria are adequate; and questioning whether enforcement and penalty provisions are adequate.

The consultation will be open for public submissions until 5pm on Friday, February 15, 2013.

For further information, see
http://www.mpi.govt.nz/news-resources/consultations/review-of-the-nz-horticulture-export-authority-act

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