OANZ May BUZZ

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

Both the global pandemic and the current cost of living crisis have illuminated the human cost of food insecurity in Aotearoa. As food prices continue to rise, it is Māori who are most likely to experience food insecurity with over one in four tamariki living in relative poverty. With this in mind, we are excited to see the Te Waka Kai Ora and Te Papawhakaritorito Trust's Whenua Rongo initiative for a discussion on A National Māori Kai and Soil Resiliency later this week. This free, interactive wānanga focuses on providing insights and actions to ensure the future of Māori food resilience and sustainability.

As New Zealand's corporate food sector pushes for a policy review on genetic engineering, OANZ has been continuing to support a precautionary approach to GE here in Aotearoa. Last week we organised a meeting with several interested parties to consolidate a strategy and coordinate a national campaign to get GE-free messaging out to the greater community. As most of you know, proponents of GE have been persistent in lobbying and have strong financial backing. OANZ will share details with the sector as the campaign emerges.

OANZ is sad to announce the departure of Viv Williams as OANZ CEO. Viv has done a tremendous job for the organic sector over the last three years. Highlights of her efforts include:

  • Supporting the launch of the Organic Market Report.

  • Securing funding for and development of the Organic Sector Strategy.

  • Face to face consultation with the sector up and down the country

  • Developing a closer working relationship with the Government

Viv has worked tirelessly for all of us on a mostly pro bono status. We wish Viv all the best and look forward to her ongoing relationship with OANZ as an advisor.

Tiffany Tompkins has stepped down as Deputy Chair and has taken over from Viv. We are very fortunate to have Tiffany step up into the CEO role and continue the excellent work. Please reach out to Tiffany or me for anything that we can do to support your work with the Organic Sector.

Ngā mihi nui,

Chris

Chris Morrison – Chair

T: 027 548 1293

OANZ