Senior Risk Policy Advisor

Senior Risk Policy Advisor (×2) – Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ)

• Wellington-based, hands-on roles.


• Diverse, meaningful work supporting New Zealand growers.


• Lead portfolios in biosecurity, crop protection, food safety and more.


• Drive evidence-based advocacy in a purpose-driven sector.

Who we are:
Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) is a national organisation representing the interests of New Zealand’s 4,500+ commercial fruit, vegetable and berry fruit growers.

Our aspiration: Healthy food for all forever - Oranga kai, oranga tangata, haere ake nei
Our vision: To create an enduring environment where growers thrive

About the team:
At HortNZ, the Risk Policy team sits within the Strategy and Risk group. We work across sectors and with regulators to find practical solutions that support grower success while protecting our environment. We do this by:

• Gaining a deep understanding of current and emerging grower challenges and priorities


• Identifying risks from biosecurity, food safety, crop protection, and adverse events


• Ensuring national policies and regulations are practical for growers while addressing real risks


• Developing tools and frameworks to help growers manage these risks effectively


• Keeping growers and rural professionals up to date with new regulations, policies, and best practices

About the role:
We’re looking for two motivated and experienced Senior Risk Policy Advisors to join our high-performing Risk Policy team. These are senior-level roles where you will use your expertise to advocate for growers, often in collaboration with other industry stakeholders.

Your focus will be on pan-sector risks — primarily in the areas of biosecurity, food safety, and crop protection — and you will lead one or more portfolios depending on your background and interests. You’ll build strong relationships across the sector, working with growers, product groups, regulators, and other stakeholders to ensure practical, evidence-based policy outcomes.

Who we are looking for:
You’re someone who thrives in a fast-paced, purpose-led environment. You have strong policy or technical experience in a relevant area of the primary sector and enjoy applying strategic- and critical thinking to complex challenges.To succeed in this role, you will have:

• A relevant tertiary qualification


• Relevant experience in policy, technical, or scientific roles within the primary sector


• A strong understanding of biosecurity, food safety, crop protection, or other key risk areas


• Experience scoping and leading complex projects, often with competing priorities


• Excellent communication skills — both written and verbal


• The ability to explain technical and policy issues in plain language (and vice versa)


• Strong analytical and critical thinking skills


• Ability to work independently and collaboratively, and to manage multiple priorities


• Willingness to travel within New Zealand occasionally, including overnight

We’d especially love to hear from you if you have experience in central government regulation or science-based policy development.

What we offer:

• Competitive salary 


• 20 days annual leave plus your birthday off


• Full time 40 hours per week with flexible work arrangements, including one work-from-home day per week


• Excellent learning and development opportunities


• A supportive, passionate, and highly motivated team based in central Wellington

To apply

Please click "apply for this job" button (top right of the page) to submit your application, to view the position description for the role click here 

Please note: 

• We will accept application only through our Internal application tracking system, BambooHR


• Applicants for this position should have NZ residency/citizenship or valid NZ work visa.


•  We reserve the right to close the advertisement early if we receive enough applicants for the role.

If you require any further assistance or have any questions regarding the application process, please contact Qinhua Shen ([email protected] ) in the first instance or Shweta Prasad ([email protected] )

Applications close at midnight on 6 May 2025