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27 February 2007
Auckland
A Nielsen agricultural survey revealed today that although the new HSNO legislation stipulates farmers need an Approved Handler’s Certificate to purchase and handle agri-chemicals deemed to be hazardous substances, only half of Kiwi farmers (56%) are fully or partly trained to handle, store, dispose and emergency-manage hazardous substances. And of those not trained, 16 percent plan to obtain restricted chemicals via contractors and one in three (31%) via other staff/family members.
Under the new HSNO (Hazardous Substances and New Organisms) Law, as of January 1st this year, anyone wishing to purchase and use agrichemicals must have an Approved Handler’s Certificate. This potentially could have a wide impact on farming, as almost half (49%) of farmers have used toxic substances in the last year.
The majority of farmers knew what the Standard covered (95%) but almost one in five (17%) were unaware the Standard was administered by ERMA under the HSNO Act.
“Training has definitely improved farmers’ understanding of the legislation and who administers it”, commented Ms Maree Luckman, Senior Manager, Nielsen Agricultural Services. “But as of December, only 56 percent of farmers across New Zealand had gone through training, with a larger proportion of those trained coming from the South Island – led by very high levels of training among cropping farmers”.
Of cropping farmers, 90 percent had undertaken training, a much higher proportion than sheep (62%), dairy (50%) and beef (46%) farmers.
“What was disturbing was that across all farmers, whether they had been trained or not, nearly two in five (38%) thought there was a grace period until March 1st to continue purchasing restricted chemicals, which is totally incorrect”, Luckman said.
“A more positive fact is that 60 percent of farmers who undertook training claimed to have learnt something that had significantly changed the manner in which they handle, store and use agricultural chemicals”, Luckman continued. “The challenge will be for them to continue to integrate that knowledge into farming practice.”
Just over a quarter (27%) of trained farmers had changed the way they store chemicals, and 16 percent have changed the way they use and apply chemicals. One in five (20%) found nothing new in the training.
Of those not fully trained as of December 2006, 30 percent intended to undergo training by January 1, while another 19 percent intended to undergo training in the first half of 2007. This indicates a large market potential for training, as just under one-in-ten (8%) pastoral and cropping farmers intend to train in the first half of the year – over 4,000 farmers may still intend to get trained in the first half of this year. Close to a further 3,000 intend to train at a later date.
Almost two in five (38%) non-trained farmers indicated that they have no intention of ever training, their main reasons being that someone else (either staff or family) was trained (15%), or it was an unnecessary law/they didn’t think they needed training/didn’’t believe the law would be enforced (8%).
A follow-up Nielsen study may be carried out next year (2008) to assess the ongoing impact of the Approved Handler requirement on farming practices.
Chart 1: Level of training in different regions throughout New Zealand
Chart 2: What changes have trained farmers made in how they handle agrichemicals
(444 trained farmers – 56% of 798 farmers surveyed)
Chart 3: Intentions of training for the untrained farmers
(354 untrained farmers – 44% of 798 farmers surveyed)
About ACNielsen
ACNielsen, a division of the Nielsen Company, is the world's leading marketing information provider. Offering services in more than 100 countries, the unit provides measurement and analysis of marketplace dynamics and consumer attitudes and behaviour. Clients rely on ACNielsen's market research, proprietary products, analytical tools and professional service to understand competitive performance, to uncover new opportunities and to raise the profitability of their marketing and sales campaigns. To learn more, visit www.nielsen.com.
About The Nielsen Company
The Nielsen Company is a global information and media company with leading market positions and recognised brands in marketing information (ACNielsen), media information (Nielsen Media Research), business publications (Billboard, The Hollywood Reporter, Adweek) and trade shows. The privately held company has more than 42,000 employees and is active in more than 100 countries, with headquarters in Haarlem, the Netherlands, and New York, USA.
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