Have your say
The Ministry for Primary Industries would like your feedback on proposed new alternative methods, approval processes, and recordkeeping and reporting requirements for the on-land disposal of fish not sold or disposed of to Licensed Fish Receivers or through wharf sales.
Consultation opens 16 November and ends 15 December 2022.
Consultation document
Discussion paper – Regulations for alternative methods of disposal for landed fish in the commercial fishing industry [PDF, 539 KB]
Related information
Consultation on regulations to support the implementation of the Fisheries Amendment Act 2022 – Cabinet paper [PDF, 671 KB]
Consultation on new Fisheries Regulations – Fact sheet [PDF, 865 KB]
Fisheries Amendment Bill – NZ Parliament
Consultation background
Under section 191 of the Fisheries Act 1996 a commercial fisher can only sell or dispose of landed catch to Licensed Fish Receivers or via wharf sales. Situations may arise where some catch may not be completely disposed of through those methods, leaving fishers with no other legal means of disposing of what is left.
We are consulting on:
- Three proposed alternative methods of disposing of fish for inclusion in the regulations:
- Disposal to waste management companies and landfills.
- Disposal via donation.
- Providing for online fish sale platforms aligned to wharf sales to modernise fisher-direct sales of fish to the public.
- Proposed requirements relating to the disposal and verification of use of alternative methods (for example, recordkeeping and reporting on disposal).
A new, separate, set of regulations on a new graduated penalties and offences regime is also being consulted on at the same time in the discussion paper, Infringement regulations for retention and discarding offences in the commercial fishing industry. These regulations are complementary to the regulations being consulted on here and, for this reason, are undergoing a separate regulatory impact assessment process.
Making your submission
Send us your feedback by 5pm on 15 December 2022.
Email your completed form to FisheriesChangeProgramme@mpi.govt.nz
While we prefer email to ensure we receive your submission on time, you can post your response to:
Fisheries policy team
Policy and trade branch
Ministry for Primary Industries
PO Box 2526
Wellington 6140
Include the following information:
- your name and title
- your phone number, address, and email
- your organisation’s name (if you are submitting on behalf of an organisation).
Submissions are public information
Note that all, part, or a summary of your submission may be published on this website. Most often this happens when we issue a document that reviews the submissions received.
People can also ask for copies of submissions under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA). The OIA says we must make the content of submissions available unless we have good reason for withholding it. Those reasons are detailed in sections 6 and 9 of the OIA.
If you think there are grounds to withhold specific information from publication, make this clear in your submission or contact us. Reasons may include that it discloses commercially sensitive or personal information. However, any decision MPI makes to withhold details can be reviewed by the Ombudsman, who may direct us to release it.
