Saudi Arabia seeks live exports

KELLY HODEL/Waikato Times

FIRST VISIT: Saudi Arabia's Minister of Agriculture, Dr Fahad Balghunaim, pictured left, meets AgResearch deputy chairman Graham Fraser yesterday.

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Saudi Arabia is calling for New Zealand to lift its ban on live animal exports to the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia's Minister of Agriculture, Dr Fahad Balghunaim, told the Times at AgResearch's Ruakura campus yesterday, that he had been speaking with the New Zealand Government about exporting live animals.

The New Zealand Government suspended exports of live stock in October 2007, pending the outcome of a legislative review of the trade.

Dr Balghunaim was in New Zealand as the Saudi Arabia head of the Joint Ministerial Commission between Saudi Arabia and New Zealand.

Saudi Arabia had a real need for live animals particularly during the pilgrimage to Makkah where Muslims offered the livestock up as a sacrifice, Dr Balghunaim said.

New Zealand exports chilled meat to the Saudi Arabia which also imports animals, live and chilled, from Argentina, Australia, Sudan, Romania and Uruguay.

"People's shopping habits are different and they prefer to buy live meat from the market rather than purchase meat at the supermarket," Dr Balghunaim said.

However, this was starting to change.

Dr Balghunaim, making his first visit to New Zealand, said Saudi Arabia was very different agriculturally from New Zealand because of its shortage of water.

Saudi Arabia had slowed down its traditional agriculture activities and was focusing on crops requiring less water.

AgResearch deputy chairman Graham Fraser said yesterday's meeting was a good opportunity to explore whether any of the technologies AgResearch was developing could have applications in Saudi Arabia.

The visit was an initial meeting and no agreements between the two parties had been made.

"There are no plans at this time, but we hope the interaction will lead to future connections between the two parties,"Mr Fraser said.

- © Fairfax NZ News