YOUR INDUSTRY
BIOSECURITY 101: HOW MPI WORKS TO PROTECT GROWERS Words by Heather Woods
Biosecurity staff at work
Mike Inglis, Northern Regional Commissioner for the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), spoke to us about the biosecurity approach to Covid-19 and more broadly about how MPI works to reduce the impact of threats to growers.
erected, and physical distancing – everything we now know as the physical changes required and which are vital for biosecurity risk assessment on the passenger side. In fact, the entire MPI response was aligned with the Ministry of Health, with well-being at the core of their communications for the ongoing support of staff health and safety. It has also been important to support essential workers; they have done us all proud, they have helped keep us safe.
The Covid-19 response
Threats to New Zealand and how they’re managed
Mike Inglis says New Zealand – the people, the government, and the many agencies tasked with managing Covid-19 – has done an excellent job, and the small freedoms we appreciate now like going to the beach, to work or to the shops, are testament to that. From an MPI perspective, it has taken solid leadership, clear deliverables and an outcomes-focused plan for it to work, and those qualities are second nature for Mike, coming from a background in Corrections where there is a policy of driving performance and operational excellence to ensure successful leadership. And he’s a public servant at heart, so when Covid-19 made its grand entrance, the only option was to rally the troops and get down to business. Protecting people is the number one priority so a Covid-19 oversight group was formed to engage with the Ministry of Health, unions and public service agencies at the airports. In the early days where flights from China were the main concern, it was all about arranging appropriate PPE (personal protective equipment), physical screens being 44
NZGROWER : MARCH 2021
To be effective in managing threats at the border it is important to understand that the biosecurity system is not actually just about the border. Risks are managed through multiple layers of protection. Offshore agreements with other countries are in operation before people and cargo even reaches New Zealand. Countries exporting goods to New Zealand can help to mitigate the risk of biosecurity threats by following processes and procedures to ensure proper treatment and fumigation where required. On arrival at our border, goods are screened, passengers are scanned, and trained staff assess the high-risk targets and the likelihood of hitchhikers. If pests are found, they’re eradicated and managed quickly. Passenger non-compliance with biosecurity rules is usually unintentional, like forgetting an apple or orange in hand luggage, which makes targeting them difficult. But mistakes like that can be costly and allow threats like fruit flies to go undetected until it’s too late. Staff are expertly trained in risk assessment, have access to effective tools,
