Senior Adviser

**Senior Adviser (Plant Assurance)**
**Role 1**:Fixed-term/secondment, 15 Dec 2025 - 23 Dec 2026 (40 hours per week)

**Role 2**:Fixed-term/secondment until 30 June 2026 (36 hours per week)
**Location**:Wellington
**Salary band & range**:General Salary Range D: $100,934 to $118,005 depending on skills and experience

**About the Role - Korero mo te Turanga**

We're looking for two Senior Adviser's to join our Plant Assurance team within the New Zealand Food Safety business unit. These roles are central to maintaining and enhancing the integrity of New Zealand's plant export assurance systems, including phytosanitary (plant health), seed varietal, food safety, and other quality systems.

You'll contribute to the development, implementation, and monitoring of assurance frameworks that support government-to-government official assurances and facilitate market access for New Zealand's plant products.

As a Senior Adviser, you will:

- Develop and review phytosanitary and plant export requirements in line with international standards.
- Provide technical advice to verification agencies and MPI stakeholders.
- Monitor and assess the performance of plant export assurance systems.
- Contribute to international standard-setting.

These are dynamic roles in a fast-evolving regulatory environment, offering the opportunity to make a tangible impact on New Zealand's primary industries.

**About You - Mou**

You'll bring a strong mix of technical expertise, regulatory understanding, and stakeholder engagement skills. You'll be comfortable navigating complex assurance frameworks and contributing to trade discussions.
- A relevant tertiary qualification (e.g. plant sciences, horticulture, food technology).
- 5-10 years of relevant technical or professional experience in leading technical work programmes.
- Experience in phytosanitary systems, plant product assurance, or export frameworks.
- Knowledge of international agreements and standards for plant products and/or auditing or quality standards.
- Strong analytical, communication, and relationship management skills.

**About the Team - Mo to matou Ropu**

The Plant Assurance Team is part of the Plant, Wine & Organic Assurance Team (PWO) which is responsible for the Plant export assurance programme, Wine assurance programme and Official organic assurance programme. The PWO team plays a key role in assuring the integrity, safety and reputation of New Zealand's exported food and primary products.

The Plant Assurance team are a collaborative, experienced and knowledgeable group dedicated to maintaining and enhancing the assurance systems that underpin New Zealand's plant export system. The team works closely with Plant Exports, the Certification Unit, and Bilateral Relations & Trade and Trade Policy.

**About MPI - Mo te Manatu Ahu Matua**

We're passionate about growing prosperity in the sector while ensuring respect for Kaitiaki - guardianship of our natural resources.

**Benefits of working at MPI - Nga hua o te mahi i te Manatu Ahu Matua**
- Annual Wellness payment
- Bi-annual paid eye test and contribution to the costs of corrective lenses/frames
- Career development and internal opportunities across the branch and organisation

**Are you ready to make a difference? - Kua rite koe mo tenei mahi whaitake? -**
We are committed to being a good partner under Te Tiriti o Waitangi which includes working closely with iwi, hapu, whanau and hapori.

In your cover letter we'd like to know about you, your values; your interest and motivations for this role; the abilities, strengths, personal attributes and diverse perspectives you will bring to the role and this organisation, which may have also been gained outside of the workforce.

**Applications close at 11.59pm on Friday 24**th** October**

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