Last month, KVH joined the Allegrow team to share biosecurity insights and practical advice at workshops held for growers and farmers in the Ōpōtiki and Whakatāne regions.

These sessions were part of a two-year Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI)-funded programme aimed at helping orchard owners and land managers better understand a wide range of regulatory requirements related to climate, water, the environment, and biosecurity.

The workshops were tailored to the specific needs of the regions and KVH shared the story of the Psa response and how it led to the establishment of the organisation and then the National Psa-V Pest Management Plan. The discussion also covered how this work has since expanded to support the broader biosecurity focus of the Pathway Management Plan, which aims to protect against the full range of biosecurity threats facing our industry. This underlined the importance of industry awareness, robust on-orchard biosecurity plans, and the early reporting of anything unusual.

MPI’s regionally based On Farm Support team reinforced the value of preparedness by outlining the impacts and spread of Avian Influenza and reminded attendees of the ongoing TB containment work, Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) was highlighted as an example of a biosecurity threat which would impact across the whole of New Zealand.

These workshops give participants the chance to better understand the risks, and rewards, of being proactive in biosecurity - growers can register here for the July Allegrow field days which focus on hands-on pest plant control. Sessions will be held in Whakatane on Tuesday 15 July and Opotiki on Wednesday 16 July.