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ACVM Notice: Agricultural compounds exempt from registration

What are exempt agricultural compounds?

Agricultural compounds (which include agricultural chemicals, veterinary medicines, pet food/animal feed, fertilisers and vertebrate toxic agents) must be authorised under the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines (ACVM) Act 1997 before being imported, manufactured, sold or used in New Zealand.

If the purpose of the Act can be achieved without regulatory assessment prior to the compound’s authorisation, the compound may fit a category of exemption from registration in the ACVM (Exemptions and Prohibited Substances) Regulations 2011.

The purpose of the ACVM Act (s 4) is to:

  1. prevent or manage risks to public health, trade in primary produce, animal welfare, and agricultural security 
  2. ensure that the use of agricultural compounds does not result in breaches of domestic food residue standards 
  3. ensure the provision of sufficient consumer information about agricultural compounds.

Purpose of the notice

Although regulatory assessment is not necessary for exempt agricultural compounds, it is essential that people responsible for the agricultural compound take steps to ensure that it always complies with the conditions of exemption specified in the regulations.

This notice (Agricultural Compounds Exempt from Registration) specifies in more detail the requirements in the ACVM (Exemptions and Prohibited Substances) Regulations 2011 for agricultural compounds exempted from registration under those regulations. While the regulations specify requirements for the exempt agricultural compound, this notice specifies requirements for the person or people responsible for the exempt agricultural compound to ensure that the requirements are met.

Have your say

You're invited to comment on this notice. A few questions we would particularly like feedback on are:

  • Are any of the requirements unclear? 
  • Does the information contained in the notice sufficiently clarify and describe the requirements? If not, why not?
  • Does the notice sufficiently describe the requirements for all exempt products outlined in the ACVM (Exemptions and Prohibited Substance) Regulations? If not, what is missing or could be expanded on?

Consultation documents

Making a submission

Email your feedback on the consultation document by 5pm on 19 May 2017 to ACVM.Consultation@mpi.govt.nz

Make sure you include in your submission:

  • the title of the consultation document in the subject line of your email
  • your name and title (if applicable)
  • your organisation's name (if applicable)
  • your address
  • the answers to the questions posed above for each compound you are commenting on.
  • the clause you are commenting on

While we prefer email, you can send your submission by post to:

Agricultural Compounds Exempt from Registration

ACVM Programmes and Appraisals
Ministry for Primary Industries
PO Box 2526
Wellington 6140
New Zealand.

Submissions are public information

Any submission you make becomes public information. Anyone can ask for copies of all submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the information available unless we have a good reason for withholding it. You can find those grounds in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA. Tell us if you think there are grounds to withhold specific information in your submission. Reasons might include, it's commercially sensitive or it's personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold information can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may require the information be released.

MPI business units