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Procurement
Government procurement policy
New Zealand's government procurement policy is based on the commercial principle of best value for money through competition, including full and fair opportunity for domestic suppliers. The Ministry of Economic Development provides policy advice and mandatory procedural rules. Individual government agencies are responsible for their own purchasing decisions.
A summary of government procurement guidelines, policies, and relevant links can be found on the Ministry of Economic Development website. Environmental issues were mentioned in the Ministry of Economic Development’s 2002 Government Procurement in New Zealand: Policy Guide for Purchasers.
Procurement: A Statement of Good Practice was issued by the Office of the Auditor and Controller-General in 2001. This defines “value for money” as the best possible outcome for the total cost of ownership (or “whole of life” cost), which does not necessarily mean selecting the lowest price.
Sustainable procurement
Good practice sustainable public procurement extends the ‘best value for money’ concept to include resource use costs and non-price attributes of a product or service. Sustainable public procurement includes giving effect to national sustainable development policies and targets. For example, taking account of cost savings from energy efficient products and technologies over the whole of their useful life saves money on electricity bills, but also helps implement climate change policy objectives.
Under the Govt3 programme, member agencies have increasingly added sustainability aspects to tender and contract documentation, with resulting improvements in areas such as fuel efficiency, building energy efficiency, office supplies, cleaning services, and print services.
Some agencies have agreed to share some examples of sustainability clauses that they have used in documentation.
Specific product or service related issues are further discussed in the Govt3 pages on transport, buildings, and office consumables and equipment.
Environmentally Friendly Products
The Ministry for the Environment leads on the environmental sustainability aspects of Govt3, and works with other agencies leading Govt3 developments on social, cultural and economic aspects of sustainability.
Companies are increasingly making claims about the environmental or wider sustainability credentials of their products or operations. Key resources for making decisions on sustainable procurement include ecolabels, industry standards, company self-declarations, and intrinsic or advertised product characteristics.
Ecolabels
An “ecolabel” is any logo or common label that purports to inform about the environmental and/or social sustainability benefits of a product or supplier.
New Zealand’s premier life-cycle impacts ecolabel is Environmental Choice New Zealand. The label was established in 1992, is owned by the New Zealand Government, and is administered by an independent trust. It is the NZ consumer’s confirmation that the product they are purchasing is better for the environment than other products which do not meet such specifications.
Many types of ecolabel exist, and new ones are increasingly emerging. These ecolabels cover a very wide range of significance, product coverage, reliability and meaning. This has created confusion for consumers interested in reducing environmental impact through their purchasing decisions. For an interim guide on available ecolabels, see our brief overview of ecolabels.
For more information, contact govt3@mfe.govt.nz.
