Game Animal Council Just the Tonic
"Establishing a Game Animal Council will be a tonic for the guided hunting industry"
said Don Patterson President of the New Zealand Professional Hunting Guides Association (NZPHGA).
Internationally, New Zealand is considered to be the World's premier destination for hunted red deer stags and Himalayan
Tahr and is increasingly recognised for the quality of its other game species. It is considered a safe, stable,
unpolluted country, and attracts a discerning, influential hunting clientele.
"These are high value, low impact tourists that in these trying times we need more of" said Don Patterson "The potential
for expanding the tourist hunting industry is under considerable constraint by inappropriate legislation, which also
promotes abuse and misconception. Attempts by industry associations to prevent the discrediting of tourist hunting by
sub-standard operators have been frustrated by lack of Governmental support."
Membership of the NZPHGA has been growing steadily as the industry continues to develop. The NZPHGA is concerned by the
apparent inability or unwillingness of the current control regime to adequately deal with many of the issues it is
currently facing.
“We need an organisation focussed on game animals, hunting and conservation to manage the guided hunting industry. An
organisation that we have a stake and a say in" said Don Patterson. "We totally endorse the Game Animal Council as that
organisation"
Ends