A Concerning Development for New Zealand Hunters
MPI announced a new deer and pig programme, and Forest and Bird shares support online.
All hunters must know what was launched on Rural News in an article on 3 December announcing a new Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) initiative targeting “feral deer and pigs.” The way this initiative has emerged - through media interviews rather than official communication - signals a major shift in government approach to game animals. It is a development every hunter should be aware of.
MPI has been meeting with DOC, Forest & Bird, Federated Farmers, and Beef + Lamb to discuss “reducing impacts” of deer and pigs on forests, farms, and carbon plantings. These meetings appear to have been going on without the involvement of NZDA or the statutory body representing game animals, Game Animal Council (GAC). We have also confirmed today that the Minister for Hunting and Fishing himself was not briefed prior to the media story.
This is not routine policy work. This is a coordinated programme targeting deer, developed behind closed doors, with no input from hunters, and promoted to the public as a consensus “industry-wide” effort. It is, in effect, the beginning of a national push to significantly reduce or eradicate deer and pigs - without the organisations responsible for managing these species being at the table.
Have MPI just launched a war on our deer?
According to Rural News, MPI is leading an effort to address “rising populations” of deer and pigs. The article quotes MPI officials estimating that New Zealand has 1.3 to 1.8 million deer and claims the population is increasing by “about 200,000 animals a year.”
The article states that MPI has formed a collaborative group with:
- DOC
- Federated Farmers
- Forest & Bird
- Beef + Lamb NZ
- “others” (not specified) – but not NZDA nor GAC
This group is reportedly working on “region-by-region” programmes to tackle deer and pigs.
Notably absent from the article - and from the process – are NZDA, GAC, commercial and professional hunters and recreational hunters. The omission is glaring and deliberate.
Why NZDA Is Alarmed
1. Hunters were excluded from a national deer programme
Hunters collectively harvest more deer and goats in New Zealand than any official control measure – thousands of deer and goats annually, at no cost to the taxpayer. We deliver and are a key impacted stakeholder, but despite this, MPI has:
- failed to notify NZDA
- excluded the statutory Game Animal Council
- omitted every hunting sector stakeholder
- briefed and included lobby groups who advocate for deer eradication
- bypassed the Minister
This is a complete breakdown of process and sector engagement.
2. Forest & Bird has publicly endorsed the programme as a long-awaited crackdown in a social media post
Forest & Bird quickly posted a celebratory statement repeating MPI’s population numbers and thanking MPI, DOC, Federated Farmers, and Beef + Lamb for “tackling the challenge.” Their framing is overtly ideological and supports an eradication-driven approach to deer. See the post here.
3. The conversation has included unacceptable tools such as poisoning
There have been sector whispers and commentary suggesting extreme measures may be considered, including the use of brodifacoum or other toxins against deer or pigs directly.
NZDA’s position is unequivocal:
- Poisoning deer is unethical, unsafe, unlawful, and unacceptable.
- Brodifacoum bioaccumulates in ecosystems and animals
- It threatens dogs, wildlife, hunters, and waterways
- It violates humane harvesting standards
- It has no place in game animal management
- If poison is even on the table, hunters must treat this seriously.
4. This looks like a coordinated push to re-define deer as pests alone
The language used - “feral,” “pest,” “pressure on forests” - and the absence of any reference to game animal values, sustainable hunting, or herd management is deeply concerning.
This initiative reframes deer and pigs purely as pests to be reduced or eliminated.
For hunters, this is effectively: A declaration of war on deer and on the future of hunting.
You can read the full article here.
NZDA will not accept:
- being excluded from national game animal decisions
- eradication ideology being disguised as “science”
- poisoning of deer
- closed-door policymaking
- the sidelining of GAC
- public narratives that misrepresent hunters’ actual contribution
Hunters are not the problem. Hunters are the solution.
What You Can Do Right Now
- Share this alert with your friends and clubs. Hunters must know what is happening.
- Follow NZDA updates closely. We will act quickly and decisively.
- Encourage hunters to join NZDA. The bigger our membership, the stronger our voice. This moment proves why NZDA matters.
- Be ready to engage respectfully and firmly. We will coordinate messages to MPs, media, and officials.
- Support our advocacy by showing unity. Hunters standing together is our strongest asset.
A Turning Point for New Zealand Hunting
What has emerged in this article is not acceptable policy. It is the outline of a national anti-deer framework built without us. NZDA will respond strongly, constructively, and decisively.
Hunters deserve representation. Game animals deserve respect and balanced management. New Zealand deserves better policy than this.
What is NZDA doing?
NZDA has let the Minister know we have been blindsided by this announcement by MPI. NZDA hopes that Minister Meager takes immediate action.
We ask the Minister to:
- Pause MPI’s initiative until proper consultation occurs. The Minister himself was not briefed, and it is essential that NZDA, the statutory Game Animal Council, and the wider hunting sector are formally included before any further work proceeds.
- Direct MPI to include NZDA and GAC as core partners in any national deer or pig programme. Hunters deliver the bulk of on-the-ground management and must be represented at the decision-making table.
- Require MPI to release the full scope, scientific assumptions, data, modelling, and meeting records behind this initiative. Transparency is essential, and the sector deserves to understand what has been planned behind closed doors.
- Publicly rule out any use of toxins, including brodifacoum, for deer or pig control. Poisoning deer is unethical, unsafe, and unlawful. It has no place in game animal management.
More updates will follow shortly.
Join and Support NZDA
Find and join a branch to get involved with promoting and protecting hunting in New Zealand! Search here.
https://www.deerstalkers.org.nz/join-and-support-us/branch-finder/