Federated Farmers is calling for the Government to immediately strip Greenpeace of their charitable status, following the activist group’s illegal occupation of Port Taranaki this week.

"There is no way Greenpeace should be eligible for charitable status when they’re engaging in illegal activity like this," says Federated Farmers spokesperson Richard McIntyre.

"They may call themselves a charity, but in reality they’re nothing short of an extreme activist group who illegally disrupt legitimate businesses and spread dangerous misinformation."

Charitable status in New Zealand is intended to support organisations that advance public benefit through education, relief of poverty, and other recognised charitable purposes.

Under the Charities Act, organisations must operate for the public good and not primarily serve political or advocacy purposes.

"Greenpeace clearly fails that test and allowing them to maintain their charitable status risks completely undermining the credibility of the entire charitable sector," McIntyre says.

"Allowing these law-breaking activists to continue masquerading as a charity is a total slap in the face for thousands of legitimate charities who actually provide a valuable service to society.

"To make matters worse, hardworking Kiwi taxpayers are effectively being forced to subsidise Greenpeace’s illegal activity and political activism through huge tax breaks for their donors."

Federated Farmers say Greenpeace have demonstrated a clear pattern of disruptive behaviour, political activism and illegal conduct.

"It’s time for Charities Services to stop turning a blind eye to this blatant breach of their rules and remove Greenpeace from the Charities Register," McIntyre says.

"If an organisation can occupy ports, threaten livelihoods, and deliberately mislead the public - all while claiming charitable status - then the system is clearly broken."

Today Federated Farmers have lodged a formal complaint with Charities Services requesting they open an inquiry into Greenpeace’s conduct and eligibility for charitable status.

A copy of that complaint has been sent to Community and Voluntary Sector Minister Hon Louise Upston and Minister of Internal Affairs Hon Brooke van Velden.

The full complaint can be read here: https://www.fedfarm.org.nz/FFPublic/Policy2/Letters_to_Minister/Charities%20Register%20Complaint%20-%20Greenpeace%20NZ.aspx

Greenpeace’s pattern of illegal behaviour includes:

- The Noble Discoverer Ship Occupation in 2012, where seven Greenpeace activists unlawfully boarded an oil drilling ship in Port Taranaki and camped on its tower for 77 hours. All were arrested and convicted of trespass.

- The Amazon Warrior Sea Protest in 2017, where Greenpeace’s Executive Director Russel Norman and two others were arrested under the Crown Minerals Act for jumping into the sea to obstruct a seismic survey vessel.

- The Parliament Crane Protest in 2017, where four activists trespassed on a construction site behind Parliament and climbed a crane to hang a protest banner during the visit of a US Secretary of State. All were arrested.

- The Fonterra Te Rapa Dairy Factory Protest in 2024, where Greenpeace activists scaled Fonterra's Te Rapa dairy factory in Hamilton. Seven were arrested and charged with being in an enclosed yard and formally trespassed.

- The Straterra Offices Protest in Wellington, where two Greenpeace activists scaled the building while three others locked themselves inside the offices. All five were arrested.

- The Port Taranaki Occupation in 2025, where six activists disrupted port operations in a premeditated action, blocking critical feed for drought-stricken farmers, resulting in four arrests.

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