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Proposed wine notices

Updates

15 March 2022 – New wine notices issued

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has issued 3 new wine notices under the Wine Act 2003 as a result of the regulatory redesign project.

Wine Notice: Good Operating Practices [PDF, 218 KB]

Wine Notice: Requirements for Recognised Agencies and Persons [PDF, 287 KB]

Wine Notice: Export Requirements and Exemptions [PDF, 255 KB]

These 3 wine notices will take effect on 1 July 2022.

The summary of submissions from this consultation 

Summary of submission: Good Operating Practices [PDF, 278 KB]

Summary of submissions: Requirements for Recognised Agencies and Persons [PDF, 264 KB]

Summary of submissions: Export Requirements and Exemptions [PDF, 322 KB]

24 September 2021 – Summary of webinar questions and answers released

This consultation closed on 20 September 2021. As part of this consultation, New Zealand Food Safety hosted a wine notice webinar for the New Zealand wine industry on 14 September 2021.

Summary of questions and answers from the wine notice consultation webinar [PDF, 203 KB]

Background to this consultation

New Zealand Food Safety, as part of the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), asked for feedback on 3 proposed wine notices. The notices are part of the regulatory redesign of wine regulations and notices which is required by the Food Safety Law Reform Act passed in 2018.

As a result of the regulatory redesign process, New Zealand Food Safety proposes that 6 existing notices and 4 related documents will be consolidated, where relevant, and updated to 3 notices.

The changes to notices apply to operators of wine standards management plans (WSMPs), wine businesses and recognised agencies and persons under the Wine Act 2003.

The proposed wine notices correlate to the proposed wine regulations. It is helpful to look at both regulations and notices when providing comments to the proposed new notices.

Find out more about the regulatory redesign project

Check the consultation on regulatory redesign of animal products and wine regulations

Draft Wine Notice: Good Operating Practice [PDF, 300 KB]

This proposed notice includes requirements for clean water testing, the supply of commodities, and the process of winemaking as it applies to wine business operators and commodity suppliers.

We wanted to hear your comments regarding this proposed notice, in particular:

  1. How easy or difficult is it for you to find the rules that apply to your business?
  2. How easy or difficult is it for you to understand the rules that apply to your business?
  3. Is there is anything we missed from the existing rules?

Draft Wine Notice: Requirements for Recognised Agencies and Persons [PDF, 399 KB]

This proposed notice includes requirements for recognised agencies, persons and laboratories.

In addition to the changes made as part of the regulatory redesign process we also propose making some additional amendments to the Requirements for Recognised Agencies and Persons Notice.

We asked for your comments regarding this proposed wine notice, in particular our proposal to include requirements for wine verifiers and evaluators to participate in a continuing professional development (CPD) programme, and to report verification outcomes electronically though our online system, Titiro. These changes mean the Wine Act system will be better aligned with the Food Act 2014 system.

We wanted to hear your comments regarding this proposed wine notice, in particular:

All recognised agencies and persons

  1. How easy or difficult is it for you to find the rules that apply to your business?
  2. How easy or difficult is it for you to understand the rules that apply to your business?
  3. Is there anything we have missed from the existing rules?
  4. How strongly do you agree or disagree that this notice provides enough information about rules for evaluators?
  5. What impacts will this new notice have on your business?

Verifiers and evaluators

  1. How supportive or unsupportive are you with the new rules for verifiers to enter each verification report into Titiro?
  2. How supportive or unsupportive are you with the new rules for verifiers to participate in the continuing professional development programme?
  3. How easy or difficult is it for you to understand the CPD requirements?

Recognised laboratories conducting chemical analysis for official assurances for export

  1. How strongly do you agree that this notice provide enough information for recognised laboratories?
  2. How strongly do you agree or disagree with adding methanol to Schedule 1 – analytes for inter-laboratory analysis programme, due to the addition of this analysis for Brazil?
  3. How strongly do you agree with adding acetic acid as an addition to Schedule 1 – analytes for inter-laboratory comparison programme (ILCP), as suggested by some laboratories?

Draft Wine Notice: Export Requirements and Exemptions [PDF, 283 KB]

This proposed notice includes requirements for export approval for New Zealand grape wine. It sets out the manner for demonstrating that grape wine for export is free from obvious fault. It reflects the outcome from the recent public consultation on the proposed changes to sensory evaluation of New Zealand grape wine for export.

Check the wine sensory evaluation consultation page, including the decision document and analysis of submissions

This draft wine notice also specifies exemptions from export requirements for all wines (grape wine and all other wines).

We wanted to hear your comments regarding this proposed notice, in particular whether:

  1. How easy or difficult is it for you to find the rules that apply to your business?
  2. How easy or difficult is it for you to understand the rules that apply to your business?
  3. What impacts will this new notice have on your business?
  4. Is there anything we missed from the existing rules?

Current notices

The 3 new notices will replace parts of existing requirements set out in 6 current notices and 4 other related documents which were not lifted to the new Wine Regulations 2022.

Wine (Specifications) Notice 2006 [PDF, 686 KB]

Wine Notice: Recognised Agencies and Persons 2017 [PDF, 986 KB]

Wine Notice: Laboratories Recognised for Testing of Wine for Export 2014 [PDF, 975 KB]

Wine Notice: New Zealand Grape Wine Export Eligibility Requirements 2020 [PDF, 859 KB]

Wine Notice: Exemption from Export Requirements for Wine Intended for Consumption During Transit 2019 [PDF, 935 KB]

Wine (Fruit Wine, Vegetable Wine, Mead, Wine Product, and Non-New Zealand Grape Wine – Export Requirements Exemption) Notice 2014 [PDF, 680 KB]

Related documents

Notice of Direction under Section 57(1) of the Wine Act 2003 [PDF, 32 KB]

Conditions of Recognition (Agencies recognised to perform verification functions and activities under the Wine Act 2003) 2007 [PDF, 15 KB]

Conditions of Recognition (Persons recognised to perform verification functions and activities under the Wine Act 2003) 2007 [PDF, 16 KB]

New Zealand Grape Wine Export Code 2006 [PDF, 1.5 MB]

These 'tracking sheets' show where the requirements in the new notices have come from.

Good operating practices [PDF, 192 KB]

Requirements for recognised agencies and persons [PDF, 213 KB]

Export requirements and exemptions [PDF, 167 KB]

About our regulatory redesign

Through regulatory redesign New Zealand Food Safety aims to make it easier for businesses operating under the Animal Products Act 1999 and the Wine Act 2003 to find and comply with their legal requirements. This is done by:

  • removing repetition, enhancing accessibility and making the language clearer
  • make legislative requirements easier to access and understand
  • ensure our trading partners better understand our requirements, which will help MPI provide assurances

To make these improvements, MPI has worked alongside industry representatives from the dairy, seafood, poultry, pet food, meat and wine sectors, as well as with recognised agencies and accreditation bodies.

After the consultation closes

Submissions will be analysed to consider any changes needed to these notices. MPI will publish a summary of submissions and MPI's responses on this website.

The redesigned draft regulations and notices will likely require businesses operating under the Animal Products Act 1999 and Wine Act 2003 to update their documents and systems. We are working to ensure arrangements are in place to support businesses with these changes.

Submissions are public information

Submissions made in consultations become public information. People can ask for copies of submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA).  The OIA says we must make a submission available unless we have a good reason for withholding it. That is explained in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA.

Tell us if you think there are grounds to withhold specific information in any submissions you have made. Reasons might include that 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 tell us to release it.