The latest 1News Verian poll shows support for a continued ban on live animal exports as election day approaches.
The ban took effect from April this year after 41 crew and nearly 6000 cattle died when a livestock ship sank in late 2020.
The practice was expected to bring in $310 million in the year before the ban — about 0.5% of the primary sector's export earnings.
The poll asked: "Should live animal exports be restarted or continue to be banned?"
It revealed 51% of Kiwis want to see the ban continue, while 30% want to see the practice resume with increased animal welfare and safety requirements. Six per cent want live animal exports to restart with no new requirements and the rest didn't know.
The Labour government introduced the ban.
"We can't afford to put our export reputation at risk for a very small portion of animals that might go by boat for three weeks across the tropics to some destination," Labour's agriculture spokesperson Damien O'Connor said.
However, potential coalition partners National, ACT and New Zealand First want to reverse it.
Those parties — currently tipped to form a three-party government after next week's election according to polling — have all said they would overturn the ban and put enhanced animal welfare standards in place.
"It is an important part of agriculture," National agriculture spokesperson Todd McClay said.
"So what we've said is, we want to get those rules right so New Zealand can have the highest standards in the world.
"If that's not possible then animals won't be leaving."
And Federated Farmers has said other countries with fewer safeguards are filling the gap, arguing the ban should be repealed.
But SAFE chief executive Debra Ashton urged political leaders to pay attention to the poll results.
"People do care about animals in New Zealand," she said.
"I think that the political parties should be taking that on board perhaps more than they have been."
SHARE ME