The Consent and Moderation Requirements (CMR) for the food and fibre sector have been reviewed and updated, providing Tertiary Education Organisations (TEO) and schools with a more streamlined document. 

CMRs are the requirements that providers must meet to assess against specific standards, and the moderation process that organisations with consent to assess need to engage in.      

The new CMR (0052 v7) for Agriculture, Animal Care and Handling, Horticulture, Pest Management, Pork Production, Poultry Production, the Primary Sector, Sports Turf, Wool Harvesting, and Environment is now available on the NZQA website: Food and fibre Consent and Moderation Requirements  

Summary of CMR updates: 

• CMR 0052 v7 has been updated to the new NZQA CMR template and does not specify the standards, 

• Clearly reflects the current Muka Tangata consent to assess and moderation requirements, 

• Includes relevant assessor criteria for delivering and assessing Muka Tangata-developed standards, 

• Includes criteria for kaimahi involved in quality assurance and programme design, 

• Includes resources required to deliver and assess Muka Tangata standards, 

• The core generic criteria covers almost all industry-specific requirements, therefore only a few industry-specific appendices are included, 

• It is written in a clear and easy to understand format. 

What happens next? 

Currently, Muka Tangata has four CMRs: 0052, 0033, 0018, and 0173.  

The transfer of standards from other Muka Tangata CMRs to CMR 0052 v7 will occur progressively as those standards are reviewed. Until the transfer occurs, the old CMRs (0033; 0018 and 0173) will be available on the NZQA framework. 

CMR 0052 v7 will be the primary CMR for Muka Tangata.  

From 1 August 2025, any new applications for consent to assess will be evaluated against the requirements of CMR0052 v7.  As the requirements have not changed substantially, we do not expect this to present any barrier for consent to assess applications, however, its important providers read and understand the changes before submitting applications. 

The table below shows the mapping between the new and old CMR template criteria: 

New CMR template criteria heading	Old CMR template criteria heading	This section sets out requirements for:
a. Skills and knowledge of teachers and assessors	Criterion 1. Development and evaluation of teaching programmes   Criterion 3. Staff selection, appraisal and development	teaching and assessing staff, including trainers, assessors, verifiers moderators and programme developers.
b. Special resources required	Criterion 2. Financial, administrative and physical resources   Criterion 7. Assessment	the special resources required for assessing against the standards, this includes developing programmes, developing assessments, specialised equipment, financial, administrative and/or physical resources, framework, curriculum, regulations, and programme evaluation requirements.
c. Learner access to resources	Criterion 2. Financial, administrative and physical resources   Criterion 4. Student entry   Criterion 5. Student guidance and support systems	for learner resources, including admission guidance, learning support, guidance, pastoral care and equipment.
d. Practical experience	Criterion 6. Off-site practical or work-based components	for practical or work-based experience.
e. site visit	Criterion 6. Off-site practical or work-based components	for the site visit.