MPI have just spent two years prosecuting a New Zealand beekeeper for the importation of comb honey. They have finally dropped the charges but this is a classic example of bullying by government bureaucrats to cover up their own inadequacies. It is a shameful case and should never have gone to court. What should have happened is that import protocols should have been looked at immediately and corrected so that this could not happen again.
There are some good people in MPI but they seem to be getting fewer and fewer. RMP's are becoming a nightmare and are nothing like we were promised in the first place. We have the tutin regulations which were changed on a bureaucrats wim with no real scientific justification and the debacle of manuka honey. Admittedly the beekeepers brought the manuka regulations upon themselves but they are not fit for purpose. They are being looked at the moment but don't hold your breath. I have some honey which is non-manuka but if I add enough clover to it it will become manuka multi floral. Some Northland beekeepers have had their livelihoods destroyed because MPI has been way too slow to back down on a standard that is obviously not fit for purpose. How long do we have to put up with a sort of idiocy. It is damaging to beekeeping, beekeepers morale. I used to have a lot of faith in the government and their departments whichever party was in power. I no longer have that faith and that is a sad thing.
There are some good people in MPI but they seem to be getting fewer and fewer. RMP's are becoming a nightmare and are nothing like we were promised in the first place. We have the tutin regulations which were changed on a bureaucrats wim with no real scientific justification and the debacle of manuka honey. Admittedly the beekeepers brought the manuka regulations upon themselves but they are not fit for purpose. They are being looked at the moment but don't hold your breath. I have some honey which is non-manuka but if I add enough clover to it it will become manuka multi floral. Some Northland beekeepers have had their livelihoods destroyed because MPI has been way too slow to back down on a standard that is obviously not fit for purpose. How long do we have to put up with a sort of idiocy. It is damaging to beekeeping, beekeepers morale. I used to have a lot of faith in the government and their departments whichever party was in power. I no longer have that faith and that is a sad thing.
