Horticulture industry body Hort NZ says one of the new acts replacing the RMA will do a far better job at protecting New Zealand’s fruit and vegetable growing areas. The Natural and Built Environment Bill, which passed its third reading last week, sets out a national planning framework that provides national direction for the rules and policies that support environmental protection and natural resource management.
Hort NZ’s Michelle Sands said this national policy must enable the supply of fresh fruit and vegetables. In other words, it requires councils to specifically think about the impact land use rules will have on vegetable and fruit production.
Sands said the RMA did not currently put a practical lens on what food production requirements were and did not protect New Zealand’s food security.
Source: nzherald.co.nz
