FAQs related to Biosecurity Summit

The dogs are used to detect items of quarantine concern. They are trained to search baggages, mail and cargo to locate undeclared or forgotten agricultural products.

Statistically only one in every twelve dogs meet the temperament and medical criteria.

Only dogs between the ages of one and three are considered for training. The dogs are temperament tested in an airport environment to assess their reactions to the work area. Dogs that readily accept the unfamiliar sights and sounds are then given a comprehensive medical exam. This is to ensure the dogs are fit for the duty that they are about to undertake. They must have a high food, prey and play drive.

The dogs work mainly at the International Airports around the country. They are also based at the Auckland International Mail Centre, and work on various cruise ships docking at our wharfs.

Plants and plant products. e.g. assorted fruits, vegetables, bulbs, flowers, leaves and seeds.

Animals and animal products. e.g. meats, eggs, live birds, reptiles.

Most of the handlers will take their operational dogs home as pets when they retire from active duties, however if the handlers are unable to keep their dogs then they are offered back to their original puppy walking families. A number of these families have waited patiently until their dogs retirement. There is also a large list of eager people wanting to take the retired dogs home.

All the prospective homes are thoroughly checked and the dogs then placed with their new families on the understanding that if there are any problems the dogs may be returned. So far none of the retired dogs have been returned and all lead a very happy and well earned retirement with their new families

This can happen, firstly we may offer the dog back to the puppy walker. If that person is unable to have the dog we then find an approved suitable home for the dog. From previous experiences, we have often had waiting lists of staff, airline employees and others that work around the airport. These are generally people who have seen the dogs working and are keen to have one as a pet. They often have their favourites.

The dogs respond either in a passive manner by simply sitting next to the baggage containing contraband, or in an active manner by retrieving the item. The dogs will then be rewarded for any correct responses. Response behaviour is trained through the use of operant conditioning - passive response detector dogs will be rewarded with food, active response dogs are rewarded with a toy and a game.

FarmsOnLine will be a government-owned database that brings together existing information about the ownership and management of all rural properties, land use, stock and crops. It will provide a hub for rural information that is vital in a disease outbreak like foot-and-mouth disease or rural emergencies like floods. Improving the response times in such events will significantly reduce losses to farmers and the New Zealand economy.

The information will also assist with surveillance programmes to protect international market access, and rural policy development. It will also be used for the implementation of specific biosecurity related programmes like the National Animal Identification and Tracing (NAIT) and the AHB’s bovine tuberculosis management programme. Information will be made available at a cost-recovery price. FarmsOnLine will not operate at a profit.

Some of the information needed for FarmsOnLine is currently publicly available and will be brought together in one place. Personal contact information needed for FarmsOnLine is held by local authorities’ rating information databases. Some of this information can’t currently be accessed because it is classified “personal’ under the Privacy Act 1993. This information is critical to New Zealand’s biosecurity system, so MAF is planning an amendment to the Biosecurity Act 1993. Personal information will also be collected directly from those happy to provide it.

Most of the public information required for FarmsOnLine already exists within various sources like the LINZ and other commercial databases. However an amendment to the Biosecurity Act 1993 is necessary so that MAF can also obtain access to personal information (specifically owner/occupier name and address) in bulk from the local authorities’ rating information databases. FarmsOnLine goes live in March 2011. If the legislation is delayed, the development phases will not be affected. The impact of a delay would be on the quality of the data as some important information could be missing. Our target of capturing 90 per cent of the information from Day One would not be realised but would be achieved over time.

There will be strict rules governing access, use and disclosure of personal information. These rules have been developed with input from the Privacy Commissioner. Personal information will not be available on the FarmsOnLine website other than to registered FarmsOnLine users who will be able to update or correct their own information if they choose.

Use of the personal information will be restricted to certain circumstances. These are: surveillance; response and pest management activities described in the Biosecurity Act. However individuals can give their permission for wider use of the information for example for market access streams.

Any additional use will require enabling legislation that would involve separate public consultation and a new Select Committee process.

At this stage, the government has decided that the farm level will not be the point of obligation for agriculture in the Emissions Trading Scheme. If that were to change, a regulation would need to be made to transfer the point of obligation to the farm level.

Such a change would not mean that Farms on Line data would be used for administering the Emissions Trading Scheme as access will be restricted to biosecurity, surveillance and pest and disease management activities. Any change to purposes for which the Farms on Line data can be used would involve a full parliamentary process including consultation and select committee hearings.

The need for accurate information is fundamental to FarmsOnLine. A data centre will update about 50,000 properties every year by contacting farmers via mail or phone. Property owners will also be able to update their information via the FarmsOnLine website.

No, MAF doesn't want to impose an unnecessary compliance burden on farmers when much of the required information can already be sourced from existing databases (subject to an amendment to the Biosecurity Act).

A MAF study indicates that bringing together data from local authorities alone will increase the number of New Zealand properties it has information about from 57 percent coverage to 90 percent.

It is hoped that the majority of farmers will understand the benefits to them and the country of FarmsOnLine and will willingly allow the restricted use of their personal information. However MAF will respect the right of any individuals who chooses to withhold their personal information.

MAF is currently working with the stakeholders and industry to develop a farm identifier. It is anticipated that it will be structured so that it will be easy for individuals to relate to and remember.

FarmsOnLine does not provide lifetime traceability of individual livestock, like NAIT. However FarmsOnLine will provide NAIT with reliable up-to-date information on rural properties.

MAF acknowledges that knowing exact details of crops and stock at all times is unrealistic. The focus is on knowing about the property, the land uses, existence or potential of stocks and crops by type, and vitally, being able to contact an owner or manager of that property so “today’s” information can be determined in the event of a biosecurity response, or to support surveillance activities.

All proposed uses of FarmsOnLine data must conform with the rules for access and use of the data, whether they are existing or new applications. AsureQuality will be able to access the non-restricted information in FarmsOnLine to continue to provide value-added services to its customers.

FarmsOnLine is anticipated to go-live in March 2011.

For more information on the use of personal information go to FarmsOnLine - Privacy

For more information on the Biosecurity Act amendments go to Summary of proposals to amend the Biosecurity Act 1993 (246 KB)