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The Animal Products Act 1999

The Animal Products Act reforms the New Zealand law that regulates the production and processing of animal material and products to:

• manage associated risks; and
• facilitate overseas market access.

The Animal Products Act will replace the Meat Act 1981 and the Apiaries Act 1969. During the 3 year transition period, the Animal Products Act, the Meat Act and the Apiaries Act (as reproduced in the Animal Products (Ancillary and Transitional Provisions) Act 1999) will operate in parallel except for a few key areas. A single regime under the Animal Products Act will operate:

• from the outset for export arrangements (including exporter registration) and for homekill and recreational catch activities; and
• from year one for cost recovery.

The transition period finishes on 31 October 2002.

Commencement

Most of the Act commences on 1 November 1999. However, the provisions in the Act relating to risk management programmes are to commence later. The reason for the delayed commencement of these provisions is that there are a number of regulations to be made.

Coverage

The Animal Products Act potentially applies to all animal material and products that are traded and used in New Zealand or exported from New Zealand. The Act has the following principal application:

• primary processing of animal materials into animal products;
• secondary processing of animal products where they are for animal or human consumption and are not covered by the Food Act regime;
• homekill and recreational catch.

The Act, includes mechanisms to exempt animal material or product, processes, premises, or persons (such as exporters) if certain criteria are met. Some of the criteria require that risks are managed under other legislation or that the known risks be negligible. Some exemptions will be in place at the commencement of the Act on 1 November 1999. There is also a mechanism to give secondary processors the choice to operate under either the Animal Products Act or the Food Act.

Risk management system

The new Act, establishes a regulatory regime that requires all animal products traded and used to be ’fit for intended purpose' through meeting New Zealand animal product standards. The risk management system forms this regime. The risk management system potentially covers all animal material because the optimal point at which to manage a risk may be anywhere along the production chain from the source to the market.

The risk management system comprises the following main types of controls:

• risk management programmes;
• regulated control schemes; and
• controls relating to animal material and products exports.

Risk management programmes

A risk management programme is an assurance programme designed by each animal product business to manage known biological, chemical and physical hazards. The programme must include the application of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) principles, identifying the systems of control, and demonstrating that they are effective.

These programmes are to be tailored by individual businesses to deliver products that are fit for intended purpose. The aspects which provide the flexibility for tailoring include the animal materials used, the processes used and the product range. The standards are to be outcome based and risk management programmes are to describe the procedures that will be implemented to achieve the relevant outcomes.

Risk management programmes will require:

• identification of the business name and the name of the person who is ultimately responsible for the programme;
• definition of the scope of the business and identification of the products and their intended use;
• systematic identification and analysis of the hazards inherent in animal material, animal product and processes;
• detail of how those hazards will be managed;
• documentation and record keeping; and
• provision for verification by recognised agencies independent from the business.

Registration of risk management programmes: Risk management programmes are to be registered with the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry following evaluation by an independent person. Key information (not commercially sensitive) is to be held on a public register.

Development and evaluation: It is the business's responsibility to develop the risk management programme and to apply and maintain it. Independent evaluation of the programme as a whole is undertaken to ensure that the entire process will deliver products that are fit for intended purpose. Evaluators will need to be accredited by MAF. When the evaluation of a risk management programme is completed, the evaluator's report is forwarded to MAF together with the risk management programme. MAF then assesses the application prior to deciding on registration of the risk management programme.

Verification: The operation of a programme must be verified on an ongoing basis. This is to check that the business is meeting its obligations under the risk management programme. It is also to check that the overall programme continues to deliver product that is fit for intended purpose. Verification must be done by agencies recognised by MAF and who will manage persons accredited for verification activities.

The risk management programme must provide the verifier with the right to access areas, processes, documentation and data to be able to confirm compliance. Verifiers will report regularly to MAF so that this information can be used to assess performance and set the scope, depth and frequency of verification that needs to be undertaken. Good performing operators will benefit over time.

Regulated Control Schemes

Regulated control schemes, where required, will generally supplement risk management programmes although they may replace the need to have individual risk management programmes in certain limited circumstances. They are a tool intended to be used to manage hazards:

• not able to be managed by individual risk management programmes or by animal product business operators
• which might be more cost effectively managed by this means; or
• for overseas market access purposes.

These schemes are expected to apply mostly to monitoring hazards at source or for applying controls to certain parts of the production or processing chain. Provision is made in the Act for them to be implemented by either regulation or by the Director-General of MAF if they are for overseas market access requirements.

Export of animal material and products

The Animal Products Act aims to ensure that overseas market access requirements are consistently met, and to manage risks to the integrity and reputation of New Zealand's official assurances and systems. The new Act does not require mandatory export certification, which is currently applicable to meat and fish products under the Meat Act 1981. The new Act provides for the issue of official assurances to be given by the Government (usually in the form of certificates) when required by importing countries. The Act also provides for Government to issue statements as to New Zealand animal product standards in other situations.

Safeguards for export products include:

• registering exporters;
• placing duties on exporters;
• provisions set by the Director-General relating to the issuance and use of official assurances;
• New Zealand's interpretation of market access requirements;
• MAF-provides and maintains information covering overseas market access requirements available to exporters and others with the need to know.

Responsibilities of key participants in the new Act

The risk management system identifies the following key areas of responsibility:

• Businesses are required to have risk management programmes - responsible for the development and operation of such programmes. Duties will apply to all risk management programme operators.
• Exporters are required to be registered - responsible for assisting in maintaining the integrity of the risk management system through the duties that will apply to them.
• Businesses are subject to regulated control schemes will also have responsibilities within the relevant schemes.
• MAF is responsible for administering the Animal Products Act, for setting New Zealand animal product standards and specifications (after consultation with affected parties), providing official assurances and providing statements as to New Zealand standard. MAF will also be responsible for monitoring and auditing the risk management system and addressing non-compliance. In practice this will involve auditing verifiers and may include checking risk management programmes and procedures required for official assurances.
• Independent, MAF accredited persons under the management of MAF recognised agencies - responsible for routine compliance monitoring, verification and other functions. Specific duties will apply to recognised agencies and accredited persons.

Homekill and recreational catch

The Act provides that animal owners who are actively engaged in the day-to-day maintenance of the animal, including farmers, will be able to slaughter their own animals. They may also continue the practice of having this done for them by service providers. However, the homekill product is not to be traded and must be used by or consumed by the animal owners own use and consumption or that of their family or household. The only exception to this prohibition will be for farmers so that they can provide on-farm employees with home-kill product. Similarly, hunters who kill game can have the game processed by a recreational catch service provider, so long as the catch is not traded and is for the hunters own use and consumption (or of members of the hunters party) or that of their family or household.

The homekill service may be provided on either the animal owner's property or the service provider's property (this includes what has been Custom Killing Premises under the Meat Act). Homekill and recreational service providers will need to be listed with MAF and are expected to be required to keep inventory records for inspection by MAF.

To ensure the continued integrity of the regulated system in the future, special requirements are to be established for retail butchers dealing in regulated animal product and who also handle homekill product. Under the new Act, such ’dual operator' butchers will be required to establish risk management programmes for their regulated product operations. These programmes, in addition to dealing with the risks associated with regulated product, will be required to demonstrate how the risks inherent in having homekill product processed in the dual business will be managed. The programmes will also be required to demonstrate how homekill product will be prevented from entering the trade, and how any product they handle will be prevented from entering the export trade.