New Zealand Food Safety today approved a new product that protects potato seed tubers from a variety of fungal diseases.
Vibrance Premium contains fungicides sedaxane and fludioxonil. It can be used to control black scurf, silver scurf, black dot, gangrene, and fusarium dry rot in potato seed tubers. It also suppresses common scab.
"Our growing potato industry is worth about $1.47 billion, so this broad-spectrum product will be a welcome option for growers," says New Zealand Food Safety deputy director-general Vincent Arbuckle.
"After receiving the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) approval and the necessary supporting information from the applicant, we approved the product within the 5-day statutory timeframe."
New Zealand Food Safety has completed a thorough science-based assessment of Vibrance Premium and is satisfied that all risks to food safety, trade, animal welfare, plant safety, and biosecurity have been managed under the Agricultural Compounds and Veterinary Medicines (ACVM) Act.
This follows the EPA approval of Vibrance Premium last week under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act (HSNO) Act. Products cannot be registered under the ACVM Act until they have an approval under the HSNO Act.
"This is just one of the many products that New Zealand Food Safety has made available for farmers, growers and vets over the past 12 months," says Mr Arbuckle.
"From 1 April 2025 to 31 March 2026, we approved 135 new products – which includes both novel and generic products – and 96 new or changed label claims.
"This month, in addition to Vibrance Premium, we’ve also approved 4 new veterinary medicines for dogs and cats."
The 4 novel veterinary products approved in April are:
- Tessie: An oral solution for dogs to alleviate situational anxiety and fear triggered by noise or separation. This is an Australia-NZ harmonised product.
- Purevax 2, Purevax 3, and Purevax 4: These are vaccines for active immunisation of cats against feline rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, chlamydia, and panleukopenia.
Other novel products approved by New Zealand Food Safety in the past year include:
- Tower: A pre-emergence herbicide for controlling certain broadleaf and grass weeds in wheat and barley sown in autumn/winter and spring.
- TwinGuard: An insecticide for the control of caterpillars, leaf miner, springtails, aphids, and Nysius huttoni in forage brassicas.
- VarroxSan: A pest-control product for the in-hive control of varroosis due to Varroa destructor in honeybees.
- Bovilis Cryptium: A vaccine for active immunisation of pregnant heifers and cows to raise antibodies in their colostrum against the parasite Cryptosporidium parvum, intended for passive immunisation of calves.
Find out more
Monthly ACVM product registration reports for industry
ACVM improvements to agricultural and horticultural product approvals
