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January 09, 2026
He Taonga te Kai, He Taonga te Whenua – Protecting Our Food, Protecting Our Future
Waatea Team
Posted On January 9, 2026
For Māori, kai is not just food.
It is whakapapa.
It is connection to whenua, to whānau, and to our right to sustain ourselves.
That’s why the discovery of a single male Queensland fruit fly in Mt Roskill, Tāmaki Makaurau, has prompted a swift biosecurity response – and a call for community vigilance.
Biosecurity New Zealand says the fly was found as part of its national surveillance programme, which uses nearly 8,000 traps across the motu. Officials stress this does not mean there is an outbreak – but it does require careful, collective action.
From a Māori worldview, this moment is about kaitiakitanga – the responsibility to protect the natural systems that feed us and the generations that follow.
There have been 13 fruit fly incursions in Auckland and Northland since 1996, and every one has been successfully eradicated. That success, Biosecurity New Zealand says, has relied not just on government agencies and industry, but on local communities stepping up.
That’s a reminder that protection of taonga is never the work of one group alone.
Over the next 72 hours, trapping and inspections will increase. Daily checks will occur within 200 metres of where the fly was found, with extended monitoring out to 1.5 kilometres. As a precaution, legal restrictions will be put in place to stop fruit and vegetables being moved out of the area.
For those living in Mt Roskill, the message is simple but important:
Do not take whole fresh fruit or vegetables off your property.
Biosecurity staff will be in the neighbourhood, sharing information and asking to inspect fruit trees. They will always carry official identification and will only enter properties with permission.
This approach – grounded in consent and communication – is important. Māori communities know too well what it feels like when decisions are made about us rather than with us. Cooperation works best when trust is upheld.
The Queensland fruit fly poses no risk to human health, but it does pose a serious threat to our horticulture sector. Overseas, this pest causes hundreds of millions of dollars in damage every year. If it were allowed to establish here, the economic and cultural cost would be significant – especially for Māori growers, whānau businesses, and marae that rely on local kai.
The fly attacks more than 200 types of fruit and vegetables, including taonga crops such as tomatoes, stonefruit, mango, and guava. The larvae burrow into the fruit, causing it to rot – destroying food before it ever reaches the table.
Biosecurity New Zealand says the most common way fruit flies arrive is through fresh fruit and vegetables brought into the country, despite New Zealand having some of the strictest border controls in the world.
This is where whānau can help.
If you think you’ve seen a Queensland fruit fly:
take a photo,
capture it if you can,
and call MPI’s Pest and Disease Hotline on 0800 80 99 66.
From a Māori perspective, protecting our food systems is about more than economics. It is about mana motuhake, food sovereignty, and ensuring our mokopuna inherit whenua that can still provide.
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