Stink bug exercise set for 1 December

Government agencies will practice responding to an invasion of brown marmorated stink bug on 1 December.

The Ministry for Primary Industries will run the all-of-government exercise, called Exercise RĀWAHO. It will involve multiple agencies and industry groups working together to determine options to deal with the potentially harmful pest.

All field activities will be simulated.

To avoid any confusion with a real event, all communications between exercise participants will be prefaced with (“Exercise Only – Exercise RĀWAHO”).

The exercise is part of a wider MPI programme to ensure New Zealand is ready to respond to a major biosecurity event.

Brown marmorated stink bug

• Brown marmorated stink bug is an invasive pest that has become a significant agricultural and nuisance pest in the US.

• MPI has identified the bug as a high priority pest to keep out of New Zealand. It affects a wide range of crops by disfiguring fruit, making fresh produce unmarketable in many cases.

• Interceptions of the pest at New Zealand’s borders have been increasing each summer.

Further information about brown marmorated stink bug is available on the MPI internet – http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/pests/brown-marmorated-stink-bug.

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