NVSB Velvetting Update: What You Need to Know for 2026/27

NVSB supervisory visits for the 2026/27 velvetting season must be completed before 15 December. Deer farmers need 3–5 adult, first-cut stags available per velvetter, facilities ready for inspection, and an up-to-date velvet book. Here’s what the Aorangi Vets team needs from you.

The National Velvetting Standards Body (NVSB) is placing a strong focus this season on strengthening the NVSB assurance and is leading with the theme “getting all parts consistently right”.

Quality assurance underpins New Zealand’s market access and national reputation. For velvetting farmers, it means making sure the practical requirements around velvetting, records, drugs and supervisory visits are all kept up to date and done well throughout the season.

At Aorangi Veterinary Services, our role is to help deer farmers across Timaru, Geraldine, Fairlie and the wider Canterbury region meet these requirements and we want to make this as straightforward as possible.

Preparing for your NVSB supervisory visit 

Supervisory visits need to be completed before 15 December and will involve a thorough check of your velvetting operation.

To make sure your farm is ready:

• Have 3–5 adult stags available, per velvetter, for the vet to observe velvet removal. These need to be adult stags, not spikers
• First-cut stags not regrowth. The vet needs to observe first-cut velvet, rather than regrowth, so don’t leave your supervisory visit until later in the season
• Make sure your facilities are ready for inspection, as per the Regulated Control Scheme (RCS) including your freezer
• Keep your velvet book up to date, including accurate running drug tallies and the volumes of drugs currently on hand
• Record NaturO ring use in your velvet book

Farmers are responsible for arranging their supervisory visit, so please contact us early to book a suitable time. Non-compliance risks inability to access drugs for velvet removal. 

Keep your velvet book and drug records up to date

Accurate records are an important part of the assurance process.

Throughout the season, make sure your velvet book reflects what is happening on farm. This includes keeping up-to-date running drug tallies, recording drug volumes on hand, and recording NaturO ring usage.

At the end of the season, your records need to be completed properly, including calculating the volumes of drugs used and signing the relevant pages.

As part of our role, we reconcile drug and NaturO ring purchases against the stag and spiker numbers and usage recorded in your books. If we identify anything that needs clarification, we will contact you.

Check your drugs and Veltrak tags 

Please plan ahead for your drug and Veltrak tag requirements. At the end of each velvetting season, unused drugs are returned to us so we can make sure your usage records are correct. We hold them until the next season starts, then pass any that are still in date back to you. Expired drugs can’t legally be handed back to farms, so we dispose of them safely. Check what you have on hand and arrange replacement stock if necessary. You can pre-order your velvetting products online at any time or contact your local clinic to place an order.

If you have questions about your drugs, records or what you need to have ready for your supervisory visit, please talk to your veterinary team.

Good records, good preparation, and consistent processes help keep the velvetting system working well. We’re here to help you get it right.

NVSB velvetting FAQs