O'Connor Damien: Oral Questions — Questions to MinistersText is incorporated into the Bound VolumeO'Connor Damien: Oral Questions — Questions to Ministers[Sitting date: 01 December 2015. Volume:710;Page:8386. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.]10.Hon DAMIEN O’CONNOR (Labour—West Coast - Tasman) to the Minister for Food Safety: Is she satisfied by all the advice she has received from the Ministry of Primary Industries on food safety?Hon JO GOODHEW (Minister for Food Safety): Yes.Hon Damien O’Connor: When was she or when were her officials first alerted to the possible risk of hepatitis A associated with imported frozen berries?Hon JO GOODHEW: The medical officer of health made the Ministry for Primary Industries officials aware late in October of a case which subsequently became four cases of hepatitis A. There are about 20 cases in New Zealand a year. What happens after a case is notified to the medical officer of health is that exhaustive questioning is undertaken to determine what the evidence might be for where that case of hepatitis A was contracted. In this case it has taken until late last month for the questions to be answered and for there to be genotyping established that shows evidence that it could be from frozen imported berries.Hon Damien O’Connor: Why did the Minister not act and ask retailers to remove products that are possibly contaminated as happened in Australia 9 months ago?Hon JO GOODHEW: The answer to this question may be a little longer than normal but I want to make it clear to the House exactly what the complete answer to the member’s questionis. In Australia some 9 months ago there were 31 cases of hepatitis A. As is always the case when looking for evidence of where the disease may have been contracted genotyping exists. In all 31 cases in Australia the genotyping was the same for all of the 31 and was able to be traced to a single product which was able to be recalled. Here in New Zealand three of the four cases have had the genotyping completed. The fourth is still under way. For the three cases that we have genotyping for we know that they are from the same source—the fourth maybe not; but maybe it is. What we know is that it is a different source to the Australian cases—[Interruption] I am giving a straight-up answer; it would pay the members to listen. [Interruption]Mr SPEAKER: Order! A straight-up answer has been given.Hon Damien O’Connor: Why will the Minister not name the products affected and offer consumers at least the option of identifying for themselves products that might potentially give them hepatitis A?Hon JO GOODHEW: The answer is that we do not have evidence that it has come from one product; therefore we want to protect all New Zealanders from the possibility of getting it from any frozen imported berries. I can advise the House that what people need to do if they have frozen imported berries which have a 3-year shelf life is bring them to 85 degrees for 1 minute or bring them to the boil. We do not have evidence of one product. The member is being overly simplistic in his response. That would not protect New Zealanders; we will.Hon Damien O’Connor: Does the Minister realise that a huge number of frozen berries are never taken to 85 degrees and are in fact put directly into drinks around this country and that anyone consuming any one of those berry-flavoured drinks or buying products from a supermarket where frozen berries are in a bag is potentially at risk of catching hepatitis A; why will the Minister not take a precautionary approach—Mr SPEAKER: Order! The question has been asked. The question has been asked.Hon JO GOODHEW: This is absolutely not a revelation to anyone on this side of the House. That is why the statement was made by the director-general yesterday and why the advice has been given that a product that is processed like ice cream with berries in it will have been raised to heat. However for a product that is put together in a cafe with frozen berries—in fact the advice is there. If the member chose to read the privileged statement or chose to read the Q and A then the member would know that we have given the advice to New Zealanders that will keep them safe. I urge the member to read the Q and A and to read the advice rather than pretend that we have not given that advice.