Wool recently became part of the New Zealand Farm Assurance Programme (NZFAP), providing the sector a simple process to verify product credentials.

PGG Wrightson and wool export subsidiary Bloch & Behrens are among the first to join the NZFAP wool programme, which already covers approximately 95 per cent of New Zealand sheep, beef and deer farmers.

Jason Everson, PGG Wrightson Wool Product and Innovation Manager, is a member of the Wool Technical Advisory Group that helped NZFAP bring wool on board. He says quality assurance will now cover growers’ wool, as well as their meat production.

“Formally aligning to the NZFAP helps the global marketability of New Zealand wool. 

“Although no extra compliance or cost is involved for wool growers, farmers will need to know their NZFAP Assurance number and to maintain product integrity ensure they maintain separation between wool from assured livestock compared to non-assured stock.
There will be communications around this in the near future.

“When future versions of the NZFAP are revised, wool also now has a voice,” he says.

Established by the red meat sector and the Ministry for Primary Industries in 2017, the NZFAP provides a single harmonised farm assurance standard for red meat, replacing the ten or more different standards developed by individual meat companies that previously prevailed. It covers practices and issues relevant to the market including origin, traceability, biosecurity, animal welfare, the environment and sustainability.

The NZFAP is today owned and managed by New Zealand Farm Assurance Incorporated (NZFAI) with all farms independently verified by AsureQuality. 

Approximately 25 wool companies have so far joined NZFAP, including brokers, merchants, exporters, scours, test houses and retail brands.