Agriculture Minister David Carter has named an advisory group to oversee the development of a national animal welfare strategy.
It's part of a review of the Animal Welfare Act which the Government is reassessing because it's more than a decade old.
The chair of the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee, Dr John Hellstrom, is also heading the new group, which includes vets as well as animal advocacy, farming, meat and dairy industry representatives.
That's drawn criticism from the Green Party, which wants to know why an advisory body shaping the future of animal welfare in New Zealand includes representatives from a meat processor and Fonterra.
It says that makes the group industry-friendly, rather than animal-friendly.
The Government aims to have the animal welfare strategy and proposed legislative changes finalised by the middle of next year.
