Last Thursday, I had the opportunity to address the Animal & Plant Health New Zealand conference in Wellington to share insights into the development of the Platform10 Global Partner Network.
Earlier, I had joined the Leaders breakfast, on behalf of Wharf42, to hear NZ Minister for Regulation, David Seymour, release the Terms of Reference for the regulatory review into the approval path for agricultural and horticultural products. To quote Seymour, ‘“Right now, there are too many delays, and the process is too complex. It stops farmers and growers from getting access to products that have been approved by other OECD countries”. In short, New Zealand has woken up and realized it needs to accelerate the registration of emerging soft chemicals and biologicals to remain competitive.
Wharf42 will actively support this process. Currently it can take five to nine years to bring a new product to market. That is totally unacceptable. Our mission is to ensure that the review enables New Zealand to establish best practice and become a global leader in terms of its regulatory process. The good news is that Minister Seymour is looking to take recommendations to Cabinet within 6 months and potentially the new regulatory framework within 12.
A game-changer for New Zealand farmers and growers and an opportunity to build a global template for others to follow.