New Zealand winegrower James Millton received 5 months community detention and a $15,000 fine for smuggling Australian grapevine cuttings, breaching the Biosecurity Act.

New Zealand winegrower James Millton received 5 months community detention and a $15,000 fine after smuggling Australian grapevine cuttings into the country, breaching the Biosecurity Act. Millton, a prominent figure in the organic wine industry, admitted to illegally importing non-native vines without biosecurity clearance and planting them, risking pests and diseases that could harm the New Zealand wine and horticultural industries. The Ministry for Primary Industries charged Millton after a Blenheim nursery raised concerns about the provenance of the cuttings.