Call for action against black market butchers

Federated Farmers is calling for the law to be enforced against black market backyard butchers suspected to be linked to livestock rustling.

"Someone is going to get very sick unless real effort is put into combating rustlers and the backyard black market butchers they operate with," Mike Hanson, chairman of the federation's rural butchers section, said today.

"Rural butchers are trained professionals but these untrained cowboys really concern us."

Mr Hanson, who is a retail butcher and a home-kill operator, said the "cowboys" operated operate under no code and no standard and "ultimately, someone will get very sick as they butcher livestock of unknown pedigree to feed a black market".

"I have little doubt that rustling, much of it unreported, is linked to organised crime because you need a fairly sophisticated operation," he said.

"The people who actively trade in black market meat are as guilty in my book as the people who steal farm animals.

"They need to be caught and punished as well."

He said rural butchers wanted a concerted effort involving council environmental health inspectors, the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) and police to enforce existing legislation.

"It may also be a case of looking at legislation to remove some of the incentives, which may be driving these black market backyard butchers in the first place."