Farm fined for sloppy practice

A Waimate farm has been fined $6000 for a "sloppy practice" that could have compromised NZ's $5.5 billion meat export industry. Cantley Developments, which owns and operates the farm, and farm manager Janet McKenzie, pleaded guilty to the charge of presenting non-complying animal material for processing reports The Timaru Herald. Crown prosecutor Tim Gresson appeared in the Timaru District Court yesterday on behalf of the NZ Food Safety Authority, which administers the Animal Products Act. The act prohibits suppliers of farmed mammals from presenting animal material for processing, if it has been treated with or exposed to a registered agricultural compound and is within the relevant withholding period as stated on the label of the compound. On September 14 last year Ms McKenzie supplied 35 bobby calves from the Waimate farm to Silver Fern Farms at Fairton for processing. The next day one of the calves was randomly selected for a residue test that gave a positive result. Mr Gresson said 12 days before the calf arrived at the freezing works, Scourban Plus - a registered agricultural compound used for treating bacterial infections in animals, was purchased by Ms McKenzie. The label on the product stated that the withholding period from presenting for processing was 14 days for cattle. It also warned that it was not for use in bobby calves as they are typically sent to the works at an age under 14 days old. Judge Moran said the offence not only had the potential to make the population sick but also to wreck New Zealand's export trade. Judge Moran said New Zealand's risk management system was crucial in expanding international markets, and if the product was to be found with excess levels of sulphonamides, there could be suspension of trade, heightened inspection and harsher control requirements for producers. He said the export of bobby calves provided some $45 million to the economy, and to the year ending in May 2008 meat export produced $5.5b, nearly a quarter of the total $19b export trade. He said those providing meat for slaughter for export needed to take the highest level of care not to compromise export trade and the health of the consumer. "This sort of sloppy practice should not occur because the stakes are so high."