In the week in which global food giant Unilever made a contribution to sustainability, New Zealand’s own efforts at a meaningful response to scientific enquiry in the food arena were notably pathetic. First, there was the news that the Department of Conservation’s environmental support team is to be slashed by half, then two significant food industries announced impending disaster because of a lack of a decent science infrastructure.
One of these, the collapse of the new golden boy of the kiwifruit industry, Zespri Gold, due to incompetent MAF biosecurity, was already a fait accompli before it was admitted this week that the chances of a commercial crop of the variety any time soon, are zero. Then came the news that Sanford’s are closing its oyster processing plant in Kaeo, which is devastating for the small Northland town, but may also spell the end of New Zealand’s Pacific oyster industry.
Not only is that $30 million plus down the tubes, as well as the livelihoods, dreams and hard labour of dozens of small business operators, it is curtains for $18 million of export earnings. The real problem for New Zealand, however, is that the cavalier treatment of our marine resource, particularly the denial of a reasonable research infrastructure to support it, is clearly putting our whole food export business at risk.
Why the oyster problem matters so much is that nobody has yet provided a precise, or even probable, cause of the oyster herpes virus pathogen that is the source of its troubles. The industry itself has known for over 12 months that there is a problem with the virus, and that it threatens its survival, but so far the guesses as to cause range from global warming (being blamed for everything, somewhat conveniently if you are short of scientists) to eutrophication of northern New Zealand’s coastal environment.
This is where the science gets very serious indeed, because if eutrophication, the most likely candidate for a cause of the oyster industry collapse, is the reason, the finger of blame points quite clearly at pastoral farming and excess fertiliser application. For the conspiracy theorists, there is fertile ground here for a case of intentional avoidance of discovery by government agencies intent on protecting the darling of our current economy, intensive dairying.
But right now we don’t know for sure, and with the inadequate state of industry supportive marine environmental science in this country, it is unlikely we will ever know, at least not in time to save a valued part of our commercial culture, and an even more valuable part of our cuisine.
Good science is an essential part of our food production infrastructure, as essential as efficient ports and internal transport systems. Whether that science is the environmental overview of DOC, or the specific analytical task of MAF biosecurity and food safety, is not for debate. Both are essential ingredients in a science culture that is the basis for sound management of the environment that is food’s fundamental resource, and the processes by which that food is created.
Without both, and the sound investment in them by a wise and well measured government, we are no more than a third world producer. Our shonky science means that any dream we can somehow convert our food exports into the foundation of a wealthier society, are just pipe dreams.
The opinions of the writer are his own and do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher.
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