John Murphy: Vegetables NZ Chair on the need to make healthy food supply a national priority

The Government is being urged to make healthy national food supply a priority. 

Growers can currently only farm vegetables with consent from regional authorities and want changes as part of resource management reform. 

Horticulture NZ says without urgent change to this, the country risks losing a significant portion of its homegrown food supply by 2030. 

Vegetables NZ Chair John Murphy told Mike Hosking that growers in key areas such as Horowhenua face the real prospect of overzealous local authority officials pulling up the driveway and telling them not to grow there anymore.  

He says the burden of regulation is massive here. 

“You heard the Prime Minister talk about barnacles on the boat slowing us down earlier in the week ... this isn’t a barnacle on the boat slowing us down, this is a hole in the boat.”  

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
I got some veggie trouble back home though, the horticultural

(00:02):
industry warming and warning of a potential food security christ
which resource management reforms the issue here the vegies New
Zealand chair as John Murphy, of course, who was back
with us John morning. How much of this is all
pre release hype and you rounding up the troops and
going what pull up versus stuff that's actually happening, Because
this reform is coming through eventually, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (00:23):
It is coming, But make the mistake about it. This
is an issue right now. Our growers in areas such
as hot A, Fine and other key areas face the
real prospect of a over zealous local authority official pulling
up the driveway and saying don't grow the anymore. And

(00:43):
that would have a massive effect on digital sployer and
his which is not good.

Speaker 1 (00:49):
No, this is the Horizon council you speak of. This
is in Palmerston North. Having said all of that, how
much of this is retrospective? In other words, they've discovered
a problem or there's some sort of scrap over the
current laws vers is what may well come to pass
in the reform.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
Well, I think it's important to note that this is
the key time as the reform is happening, and we
still don't have a commitment that recognizes supply of freehealthy
food as part of the new rama. We need that
needs to explicitly be in there as a priority, and

(01:24):
it is deustrates for our growers. And that's why, to
his credit, we've seen Shane Jones suggests grandfathering of current
consents because it is urgent now. The reason he's done
that is that he trusts our growers and he should
we grow well and we have assurance schemes that prove that.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
He's on your side. I get all of that. Part
of the problem, correct me. If I'm wrong, would be
if it becomes too hard you're growing your letters and
brassicas and all that sort of stuff. If someone comes
along and causes trouble, you just go, don't worry about it.
I'm out. I'll sell the land converted something else. Is
that how it works?

Speaker 2 (02:01):
Yeah, that is a very real prospect. And the burden
of regulation is just massive here. And I think you
heard the Prime Minister talk about barnacles on the boat
slowing us down earlier in the week, which we all
had a bit of a laugh at but this isn't
a barnacle, and the boat slowing us down as a
hole in the boat. The boat sinks, growers are gone.
It's not the vegetable supplot.

Speaker 1 (02:21):
There all right. Well, I wish you, I wish you
the best weather. John will stay in touch and see
where it goes. I'm moderately confident people ain't. Shane Jones
seem to get it. John Murphy, Who's vegetable New Zealand.

Speaker 2 (02:31):
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