Our Veggies Grown In Asia? No Thanks!

A consumer survey run by Talley’s Group, one of New Zealand’s leading producers of frozen foods, has shown that most Kiwis are unaware that many other brands of frozen vegetables are grown offshore, in countries such as China.

Talley’s is the only brand in the country providing a range of 100% Kiwi-grown frozen vegetables, despite the perception by many consumers that other brands are also growing their veggies here.

A lack of mandatory Country of Origin labelling is a big part of this consumer misperception, says Bob Darragh, Talley’s New Zealand Sales Manager.

“Growing vegetables in places like China might be cheaper, but consumer outrage over repetitive food scares in foreign countries, especially in Asia, has shown that New Zealanders want to know where their food is coming from and rightly so.

“Food takes its flavour and quality from the environment in which it’s grown. New Zealand is endowed with plenty of sun, clean air, rich fertile soil and a high natural rain fall. On top of that, we have a highly credible and transparent Food Safety and processing regime that governs our local processing facilities.

“This is not so in certain other counties, which do not exercise the same quality controls we might expect in New Zealand. Away from scrutiny and regulatory controls, vegetables and any other food can be grown and processed in highly contaminated, industrialised, highly questionable and unsafe environments. Pollution can be absorbed by plants and through the soil into the food chain. How it’s processed or where it’s grown are largely unknowns.

“With New Zealand-grown vegetables, you know what you are getting. With imported products, you don’t. It’s that simple.”

Unlike many other countries, Country of Origin labelling on food items is voluntary in New Zealand, although compulsory for other items such as clothing, footwear and wine. Food items simply need to state if they include local and/or imported ingredients but not the quantity or percentage of each. Internationally, the trend is to have complete traceability, ‘from farm to fork’.

According to the Green Party, ‘New Zealand imported an astonishing $3 billion worth of food last year, including $31 million worth of fish, $43 million worth of vegetables, $28 million worth of beef, $18 million worth of lamb, and $116 million worth of pork (or almost forty percent of the pork we consume).’

Bob commented: “At Talley’s, we support the consumer’s right to know where their food is coming from and believe Country of Origin labelling should be mandatory, to allow consumers the choice of which countries they choose to buy their food from.”

ENDS

www.talleys.co.nz

Other links of interest:
http://cool.org.nz/
http://www.greens.org.nz/image/tid/225
http://www.greens.org.nz/cool
Labelling Logic – the Final report of the review of food labelling law and policy http://www.foodlabellingreview.gov.au/internet/foodlabelling/publishing.nsf/Content/labelling-logic