Federated Farmers wishes to congratulate MAF Biosecurity New Zealand for the recent declaration that New Zealand has eradicated the Southern Saltmarsh Mosquito, also know as the ‘Aussie Mozzie'. This is a world first and it is important to recognise the value of this achievement on behalf of all New Zealanders.

"On this occasion the shot hit the back of the net and we can celebrate the successful elimination of one of New Zealand's damaging pests. However you can't take your eye of the ball, as there is always a steady stream of hopefuls who line up at front of the gate with the intention of evading our pitch," says John Hartnell, Federated Farmers bio-security spokesperson.

"This continual battering tests our resolve day after day, with every miss by the goalie creating still further problems for the agriculture industry.

"It would've been nice to see New Zealand's biosecurity score come out one-nil against the rest of the world. But unfortunately we ended up with another draw, as yet a new arrival upset the New Zealand side.

"So we've ended up with a final score of ‘Aussie Mozzie' one, ‘Great White Cabbage Butterfly' one.

"Although it's great to see the eradication of the ‘Aussie Mozzie', it has come at a substantial cost and taken many years. Therefore, Federated Farmers is cautioning that more diligence is needed at the border because our biosecurity net certainly has too many holes in it at present.

"Keeping the opposition's ball out in the first place is always easier than playing catch up once it has crossed the line" Mr Hartnell concluded.

ENDS