OANZ March BUZZ

Hello and welcome to the March edition of The Buzz, OANZ’s monthly dose of news from the organic sector and beyond.

As we head into autumn, we start to feel the ebbs and flows of the seasons. It’s time to prepare our soil and bodies for the colder months ahead and with the extra stress from Omicron this year - what we eat matters. The benefits of ‘going organic’ extend far beyond personal health. It supports producers who work hard to grow beautiful food while protecting our environment against toxic chemicals and degradation.

Speaking of chemicals, a new major report was released last week by the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. The report calls for changes to how New Zealand manages chemicals to minimise environmental impacts and highlights huge gaps in the way we currently monitor chemicals. From a farming perspective, do we know the scale, harm and impact of agrichemicals on our environment? It seems not - the current system is patchy and inadequate. I welcome a greater regulatory system to manage and mitigate the environmental impacts of agrichemicals in New Zealand.

Last week OANZ hosted organic advocate Charles Merfield as he presented an educational slideshow on the development and popularity of regenerative agriculture compared to organics. A huge benefit of becoming a member of OANZ is access to these events. Get in touch with Lou if you’d like to know more about membership, access this exclusive content or participate in future events.

Ngā mihi nui,

Chris

Chris Morrison – Chair

T: 027 548 1293