PSA's attempt to sabotage meat exports is disgraceful

"The PSA's attempt to undermine the reputation of our world-class meat industry borders on economic sabotage," says ACT Rural Communities spokesman Mark Cameron.

The Post reports that the Public Service Association has written to the Chinese and US embassies with allegations that the quality of New Zealand's meat exports is under threat by a review of models for meat inspection.

"At the first whiff of the possibility its members might face more competition in meat inspection, the Public Service Association has cried to foreign embassies," says Mr Cameron. "It's an utterly reckless attempt to cast doubt on the quality of our exports, with no evidence and when proposals haven't even been put out for consultation yet.

"The PSA would rather collapse the value of our meat exports than have its members face competition in delivering meat inspection services. Never mind that in sabotaging the reputation of our meat sector, the union risks destroying the livelihoods of those same members. This is self-defeating, kamikaze behaviour.

"The argument that private inspectors have lower standards than PSA members is mindless. Everyone involved in the meat sector takes real pride in the quality of and safety of their products, because their livelihoods depend on it.

"Animal agriculture is the lifeblood of rural New Zealand, supporting tens of thousands of jobs and families. To risk that for the sake of a union monopoly on meat inspection is a disgrace.

"ACT stands with farmers, processors, and exporters who work tirelessly to uphold New Zealand’s reputation as a food producer. They deserve better than this."