Relevant organisations and agreements
Many of New Zealand's international obligations are trade based. They are usually included in bilateral agreements with the country we trade with. But there are some over-arching agreements and international organisations that are particularly relevant for biosecurity.
The World Trade Organization (WTO)
Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures (SPS Agreement)
The SPS Agreement contains the WTO's agreed rules on how countries can protect the health of their people, animals, and plants, while also facilitating trade.
New Zealand's SPS Contact Point email is newzealand.sps@mpi.govt.nz
Find out more
The SPS Agreement [PDF, 117 KB]
Sanitary and phytosanitary measures - World Trade Organization
SPS Contact Point procedural manual [PDF, 1.9 MB]
Guide to writing SPS notifications (includes notification templates) [DOCX, 5 MB]
Joint MPI/Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade publication – Balance in Trade [PDF, 665 KB]
International Plant Protection Convention
Hosted by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) sets standards for the safe movement of plants and related products to prevent the spread of pests and diseases.
Find out more
Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations
New Zealand's process for making submissions on the IPPC international standards
World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE)
The OIE sets codes for animal-based trade, which MPI uses in developing our policies and procedures for specific animal diseases. MPI is responsible for reporting the occurrence of risk organisms to the OIE and reporting the official controls put in place to manage biosecurity risk.
Find out more
World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE)
New Zealand's process for making submissions on OIE standards
Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex)
Codex was established by the FAO and WHO to develop food standards, guidelines, and related texts such as codes of practice under the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme. Its key purposes are protecting consumer health, ensuring fair trade practices in the food trade, and promoting coordination of the food standard work of international governmental and non-governmental organisations.
General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)
The GATT covers a series of agreements which set out how signatory countries can trade goods with each other. Agreements can have a sectoral focus (for example, agriculture) and can be negotiated and reviewed over time.
Article 20 of GATT allows governments to act on trade to protect human, animal, or plant life or health, provided they do not discriminate or use the provision as disguised protectionism.
GATT and the Goods Council – WTO
Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade
This agreement aims to ensure that regulations, standards, testing, and certification procedures do not create unnecessary obstacles to trade.
Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement – WTO
Free trade agreements
Bilateral and regional fair trade agreements help New Zealand facilitate trade and maintain biosecurity. MPI provides specialist expertise in the negotiation of the SPS chapters of free trade agreements, and is responsible for developing import health standards to facilitate market access.
Find out more
Free trade agreements – Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Other relevant organisations and agreements
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES)
CITES seeks to limit the impact of trade on endangered species. The import, export, re-export, and introduction from the sea of species covered by CITES must be authorised through a permitting system.
The Trade in Endangered Species Act 1989 implements CITES, and MPI supports the system through border inspections. If an unauthorised CITES-listed species (or their parts/derivatives) are found, items will be seized and referred to the Department of Conservation (DOC).
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora
International Maritime Organization (IMO)
The IMO aims to improve maritime safety and prevent pollution from ships. Relevant biosecurity-related measures include conventions on anti-fouling systems, ballast water management, and dumping of waste.
List of IMO conventions – International Maritime Organization
Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD)
The CBD is one of a number of conventions which aim to promote sustainable development that meets our current needs while protecting resources for future generations. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, adopted by the CBD, seeks to protect biological diversity from any risks posed by living modified organisms resulting from biotechnology.
Find out more
Convention on Biological Diversity
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety – Convention on Biological Diversity
The World Health Organization (WHO)
The WHO and the International Health Regulations 2005 are relevant in respect to animal diseases that might be transmitted to humans (zoonoses).
