Archived 2005 Food Policy: Cleaning Up the Food Basket

Note: This was the policy released for the 2005 election. An updated policy for the 2008 election will be released shortly.

Read the Food Policy Summary

Introduction

There is growing evidence of the link between diet and health, and increasing numbers of people who are allergic to food, sensitive to chemicals, have damaged immune systems or suffer from chronic, diet-related diseases. Poor nutrition and an unhealthy food environment are the most significant causes of preventable deaths in New Zealand. The Ministry of Health estimates that 30% of all deaths in New Zealand are caused by poor nutrition and lack of exercise.

Much of the food that is targeted at children is high in saturated fat, sugar and salt and low in nutrients, and this unhealthy food makes up an increasing proportion of our children's diets. Already, fifteen percent of children are obese, and two thirds of our children carry risk factors for future disease.

These trends are responsible for serious health problems, including adult obesity, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, some types of cancer and other diet-related diseases. This puts increasing strains on our health services. The cost to the community, health system and taxpayer is enormous and increasing.

Clearly, if we are to improve the health of our children, we need to create an environment that makes it easier for parents to raise healthy children, and for children to choose healthy food options. At present, even conscientious parents trying to feed their children well find it difficult to compete with the huge amount of advertising aimed at children, encouraging them to eat unhealthy food. At the same time we are neglecting a huge economic opportunity.

New Zealand is already recognised as clean, green and nuclear free. We trade on the perception that our food is grown in a safe environment. It is not.

Food production techniques are causing significant damage to our environment, especially our rivers and lakes — 95% of lowland rivers and streams are now unfit for swimming. Millions of animals are suffering in sow crates and battery cages. At the same time, industrial agriculture in New Zealand is rapidly increasing its demands for energy, and the vast amount of food that is imported from across the world is contributing to CO2 emissions and climate change.

Levels of pesticide used here are higher than in many countries. Additives are permitted here which are banned in some other countries. Genetically engineered foods reach our shelves without our knowledge and only intense public pressure led to a partial requirement for labelling.

There is no world demand for GE crops or foods with high pesticide residues. They do not fetch higher prices and consumers only buy these foods if they don't know what they are.

Right now New Zealand is at a crossroads. We could keep on the path of industrial food production, selling bulk commodities at low prices. Or we could position ourselves as an organic nation with a determined strategy to support our growers to produce and market the highest quality, clean, green and safe food, making our reputation a reality before we lose it.

There is a huge unsatisfied demand for certified organic production. It pays a substantial premium. Market barriers that exist for conventional produce melt away for certified organic food. If we allow the release of GE into our food and environment we lose an opportunity forever.

Food policy is also about democracy. Citizens have a fundamental right to know what is in their food, and to participate in decisions about what will be allowed. We cannot allow the imposed rules of a world trade club most New Zealanders did not choose to join to override our rights to information or to health.

Instead of continuing down the path of industrial food production, selling bulk commodities at low prices, we want to encourage organic production and locally produced food, which is grown as much as possible in harmony with the environment. We also want to complement this with a sustained public health strategy to turn healthy choices into easy choices, especially for our children.

Vision

The Green Party envisions an organic nation where:

• Half of New Zealand's production is certified organic by 2020, and the remainder is in the process of conversion. As a first step towards this target, we aim to have 10% certified organic by 2010.

• The food we eat contributes to our health and the health of our children.
• We have an environment where healthy choices are easy choices.
• All people, regardless of income, have access to sufficient, healthy and nutritious food. In this future, there is also no obesity or type 2 diabetes epidemic because New Zealand is a healthier nation.

Healthy Food, Healthy Nation

Our objectives

Our three objectives in relation to food safety and nutrition include:

1. Cleaning up our food supply to reduce food-related risks from pesticides, antibiotics, growth hormones, food additives, and food-borne disease.

2. Encouraging healthy eating amongst New Zealanders, especially children, and ensure that consumers in all income groups have access to healthy and nutritious food.
3. Ensuring that New Zealanders are fully informed and able to exercise informed choice about the food we consume.

1. Cleaning up our food supply

Reducing food-borne diseases

New Zealand has the highest rates of campylobacter poisoning of any Western country. This is about twice the rate of similar countries. About ten thousand New Zealanders develop campylobacter poisoning each year, and 500 end up in hospital each year as a result of campylobacter poisoning.

Most campylobacter poisoning comes from the consumption of chicken meat. A Consumers Institute survey found that four out of five fresh chickens sold in New Zealand were contaminated with salmonella or campylobacter bacteria. We can reduce this intolerable level of contamination.

To help reduce food-borne diseases the Green Party will:

1. Develop a national strategy to clean up the food chain and systematically eliminate hazards and risks of infection.

2. As part of this strategy the Green Party will:
   
   1. Aim to reduce the incidence of campylobacter and salmonella contamination in the food chain by 50% over the next five years.

   2. Focus initially on poultry rearing and processing plants.
   3. Require the phase-in of state of the art food safety management including mandatory Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point, or HACCP (pronounced hassip), systems.
   4. Establish a definitive policy for controlling Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (MAP) in NZ sheep and dairy herds.

Reducing contamination from antibiotic-resistant bacteria

Antibiotic resistance in bacteria is a serious and growing problem. We now know different types of bacteria exchange genes, including the genes for antibiotic resistance. Routinely feeding animals antibiotics to speed growth and prevent disease outbreaks appears to be one cause of the rapid spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

To reduce this potentially serious risk to our public health, the Green Party will:

3. Set up a high-level panel of experts in antibiotic resistance to advise the Minister of Food on how to decrease the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria through the food chain.

4. Phase out the routine feeding of antibiotics to animals that are not sick, and the use of antibiotics (such as streptomycin) as routine sprays on crops.
5. Introduce random testing of chicken meat to ensure it is not contaminated with antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
6. Introduce random testing of high-risk imported food to ensure it is not contaminated with antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
7. Fund annual prevalence studies to assess the extent to which antibiotic-resistant bacteria are found in animals and humans.

Reducing contamination from pesticide residues in food

About 60% of our food is contaminated with pesticide residues, according to government food surveys, including residues of at least 17 pesticides that are known to cause cancer, birth defects, and liver, kidney and immune system damage.

To help eliminate adverse effects from pesticides and their residues the Green Party will:

8. Reduce pesticide use by 50% within five years, with annual monitoring and reports on progress.

9. In consultation with consumers, growers and manufacturers, set a timetable to phase out the most toxic and persistent pesticides, including all pesticides that have been identified by the US EPA as being possible and probable carcinogens, endocrine disruptors, and acutely toxic organophosphate insecticides.
10. Review all Maximum Residue Limits for pesticides, and set new limits on the basis of children's tolerances, not adults' tolerances (as at present).
11. Ensure all human health criteria for pesticide registration and regulation are based on safety for infants and the developing foetus, rather than adults.
12. Undertake annual surveys of domestic produce to test for pesticide residues and other contamination.
13. Routinely test imported food to ensure it does not contain illegal pesticide residues. No such testing is done at present.
14. Levy all toxic and hazardous substances, in proportion to their toxicity and persistence in the environment. This levy will fund organics research and the cleaning up of contaminated sites.
15. Amend the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act to deregister or ban the registration of particular pesticides were safer alternatives exist.
16. Review the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines Act and the Resource Management Act to determine the best way of creating a legal duty to ensure the least harmful methods of weed, pest and disease management are employed.
17. Make cross-boundary trespass of pesticides an offence under civil law.
18. Support organic food production

Keep Food Irradiation out of New Zealand

The Green Party believes New Zealand should remain an Irradiation-Free Nation. To this end the Green Party will:

19. Maintain a ban on food irradiation within New Zealand.

20. Ensure any imported food that is irradiated is clearly labelled as such; work towards a permanent ban on irradiated food imports.
21. Support research into alternative treatments to irradiation to extend the life of fresh produce.

Eliminate Growth Hormones in food

22. The Green Party will phase out the practice of using growth hormones to make animals grow more quickly or produce more food.

The Green Party's position is that genetic engineering (GE) should occur within a contained laboratory setting only. Our food and our environment must be kept GE Free. To this end, the Green Party will:

23. Ban the commercial release and field trials of GE organisms.

24. Prohibit field-testing or production of GE foods within New Zealand.
25. Require any imported food containing any GE ingredients to be clearly labelled, and work towards a ban on GE food imports.
26. Require safety testing for any imported GE food or commodity that is allowed to enter the New Zealand food supply.
27. Allow gene technology in secure containment to continue to be used subject to assessment by the Environmental Risk Management Agency.

Preventing BSE (Mad Cow Disease)

No cases of BSE have been reported in New Zealand, and we want to keep it that way. To further reduce the risk of BSE entering New Zealand, we need to follow World Health Organisation advice and global best practice.

In addition to present safeguards the Green Party will:

28. Prohibit the use of mechanically recovered meat in the food chain.

29. Require high temperature rendering at all rendering plants.
30. Remove high-risk material from carcasses before they enter the food chain.
31. Allow imports of cattle semen and embryos from certified organic herds only.
32. Prohibit the use of the ground-up remains of sheep and cows as stock feed.

Play it safe with food additives

To better ensure the safety of food containing food additives the Green Party will:

33. Ensure that additives that have been found to have a significant risk of causing cancer are not registered for use in New Zealand.

34. Revise the acceptable daily intake of all additives so that they are based on children's tolerances, not adult tolerances.
35. Require products that contain sulphites, monosodium glutamate, aspartame, cyclamates, and caffeine to be labelled as such regardless of the amount.

2. Encouraging Healthy Eating, especially by children

A balanced, healthy diet is essential to good health.

High sugar, high fat, low fibre and low nutrient foods are becoming the staple diet of an increasing number of our children. Fifteen (15) percent of children are already obese and two thirds of our children carry risk factors for future disease.

International research shows that poor nutrition is a key risk factor for obesity and childhood ill-health. It also shows that bad eating habits formed in early childhood tend to continue into adulthood; these can literally condemn a child to a lifetime of ill health.

Schools and early childhood services centres can have a positive influence on children and young people's lifestyle choices and behaviour. Nutritional guidelines will be developed so that all food and drink sold in schools is healthy and nutritious and does not contribute to obesity, diabetes, or dental decay.

The Green Party will:

1. Undertake high profile, multi-media nutrition education campaigns aimed at parents and children; this will include promoting healthy foods such as fresh fruit and vegetables, and positive nutritional messages on television.

2. Promote teaching of nutrition, basic cooking and gardening skills, and the origins and production of food, within the core curriculum.
3. Amend the National Education Goals and National Administration guidelines to promote healthy and nutritious eating.
4. Encourage learning by providing nutritious healthy foods and lunches in schools, school tuck shops, and vending machines. This will be also achieved by:
   
   1. Stopping the sale of fizzy drinks, sugary drinks, lollies, and chippies on school property.

   2. Installing filtered water systems in all schools.
   3. Creating productive and viable fruit and vegetable gardens at school.
   4. Extending the fruit programme to cover all primary schools and early childhood services.
   5. Establishing a cross-sector working party to investigate how free healthy breakfasts can be provided in all primary schools and early childhood services.
5. Prohibit the funding of health services by food companies that sell or promote unhealthy high fat, high sugar food.
6. Require publicly funded hospitals and healthcare organizations to set an example of healthy eating by only selling and promoting healthy food and drink that meets nutritional guidelines and is not high in sugar or fat.
7. Improve children's diets by:
   
   1. Developing a national strategy and action plan to encourage healthy eating amongst our children.

   2. Investigating and monitoring the increase in, and impact on children's eating habits of, sponsorship, advertising and promotion in schools by companies promoting food that does not meet nutritional guidelines.
   3. Extending nutrition and ingredient information labelling to fast food, take-away and delicatessen food.
   4. Reviewing all maximum residue limits for pesticides and additives and setting them on the basis of children's tolerances, not adult ones.
   5. Developing criteria to identify whether food or drink is detrimental to, or promotes, children's health.
   6. Providing free fruit to all primary schools, and teaching t nutrition, cooking and gardening skills.
   7. Requiring all food sold on school premises or at school sporting functions to meet the criteria for food and drink that promotes children's health.
   8. Ensuring schools provide nutritious, healthy foods and lunches in schools, school tuck shops, and vending machines.
8. Restrict the flood of ads for unhealthy foods by:
   
   1. Working to end commercial advertising during pre-school and school age children's television.

   2. Requiring all food advertisements screened on television to meet nationally agreed nutritional guidelines.
9. Establish a Nutrition Fund to promote, educate and encourage healthy eating amongst children. The Nutrition Fund will be funded 50% by a small levy on all soft drinks sold in New Zealand and 50% by matched government funding, and will be used:
   
   1. For educational and other high profile, multi-media campaigns to encourage healthy eating.

   2. To help schools and other publicly funded institutions to implement healthy eating policy and guidelines.
   3. To provide funding for educational and children's sports organisations seeking to replace sponsorship of activities presently funded by food companies selling unhealthy food.
10. Establish a dedicated Nutrition Department within the Health Ministry's Public Health Directorate, with functions that include:
    
    1. Overseeing the implementation of the Health Ministry's Healthy Eating, Healthy Action strategy.
    2. Publishing an annual Children's Food Promotion plan that sets out how the Ministry intends to develop an environment in New Zealand that supports children to make healthy eating choices.
    3. Administering the Nutrition Fund.
    4. Developing and publishing nutritional criteria to identify which food or drinks are considered to be nutritious and would be recommended as a routine part of a healthy, balanced diet, and which would not be recommended as a routine part of children's diet.
    5. Developing a 'traffic light' labelling system to enable consumers to quickly identify healthy food.
    6. Developing and publishing national nutritional standards and guidelines with which all schools shall comply, and which ensure that only healthy food and drink is sold in schools.
    7. Ensuring that all food and drink advertisements screened on television meet the criteria for nutritious food that is recommended as a routine part of a healthy, balanced diet.
    8. Developing recommended daily intakes for children for fat, saturated fat, sugar, salt and key nutrients.

3. Ensuring we know what we're eating

Safeguarding our right to know

The Green Party believes we have a right to know what we are eating, where it has come from and how it has been produced. In the sections above we have made specific commitments to ensure full labelling in relation to GE ingredients, food irradiation and residue and additive information.

To further protect and enhance our right to know the Green Party will also:

1. Investigate the most practical and cost-effective way to provide nutrition and ingredient information for fast food, take-away and delicatessen food.

2. Introduce mandatory minimum standards for organic production, making it illegal to claim food is organic when it has not been produced to this standard.
3. Enact 'right to know' legislation based on the following principles:
   
   1. The consumer's right to know requires labelling that is informative and easy to understand, with all ingredients and additives listed.

   2. The consumer has a right to know what pesticides, growth hormones and other controversial feeding practises have been used in the production of each food item, and the levels of residues in it.
   3. The consumer has a right to know if food has been imported and from which countries it comes. Food that has been imported is more likely to have been subjected to post-harvest pesticide treatment. For example tomatoes imported from Australia are dipped in the organophosphate insecticide dimethoate. The consumer must be able to identify these tomatoes so that they can avoid them if they wish.

Protecting our sovereign right to set our own standards

Most decisions regarding food standards and the labelling of foods in New Zealand are made by Foods Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ). New Zealand currently has one vote out of ten and is treated like a state of Australia.

To regain our sovereignty over food, the Green Party will:

4. Renegotiate the ANZFA Treaty, so that New Zealand is represented as a sovereign state, not as the equivalent of an Australian state, and has equal voting and representation with Australia.

5. Widen the Opt Out provisions of the ANZFA Treaty, so that New Zealand can opt out of a food standard on grounds of consumers' right to know, or consumer protection.

Creating a truly independent Food Safety Agency

A new Food Agency has been established within MAF. While it is nominally independent, there is a potential conflict of interest between MAF's mandate to promote exports and enhance the agricultural industry, and consumer protection and public/environmental health concerns.

To ensure consumer confidence in our food safety systems, the Green Party will:

6. Set up a statutorily independent Food Safety Agency with a strong consumer and public health focus.

7. Ensure consumers and independent health professionals are represented on all bodies that set food standards or make decisions that affect the quality of the food we eat.