Green Party food spokesperson Sue Kedgley is slamming new reports from MAF's just released survey that examined the antimicrobial resistance of bacteria in New Zealand food saying the MAF is putting animals ahead of humans.
Sue Kedgley says the report showing New Zealand has a conservative policy on administering antibiotics to food producing farm animals, is misleading.
But Federated Farmers President Don Nicolson believes that Sue Kedgley owes agriculture an apology, after comments in April about the agriculture industry.
He says that Sue Kedgley gave the false impression that farmers were using antibiotics with abandon.
In a Federated Farmers media release Don Nicolson goes on to say that her comments in April had the potential to impact New Zealand's reputation as a quality food exporter, and as a Member of Parliament Sue Kedgley has a responsibility to make certain any comments she makes are accurate.
Food safety is simply no place for politicking or scaremongering.
But Sue Kedgley isn’t backing down and stands by her earlier comments.
She says she is astonished that the report did not recommend a prohibition on the feeding of antibiotics that are significant in human medicine, to animals, on the basis that they are a risk to human health. She says that The World Health Organization warned earlier this year that the routine feeding of antibiotics to animals in agriculture is contributing to increased drug resistance among humans.
Sue Kedgley says that because MAF first shared the report with the affected industries, it shows that it is acting like an advocate for industry rather than a watchdog for safe food.
