Mr O'Connor made the comments as the pork industry awaits a Supreme Court decision on its appeal against the Ministry of Primary Industries' decision to relax the rules around the importation of raw pork, Stuff.co.nz reports.

Pig farmers fear the introduction of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) into New Zealand, one of the few countries free of the disease.

The Government has argued that the risks are slim.

Speaking at the NZ Pork conference earlier this month, Primary Industries Associate Minister Jo Goodhew said biosecurity incursions happened every week and were managed "in tried and trusted ways".

"There will always be debates about the best scientific evidence."

But Mr O'Connor told the Manawatu Standard that the earthquakes in Christchurch and Wellington provided a "timely reminder" that slim-chance events do occur.

"The slim chances do occur and the costs are huge," he said.

The West Coast-Tasman MP was in Feilding yesterday with Palmerston North MP Iain Lees-Galloway. The pair visited Ovation meat processors, Baker No-Tillage and the Ewanrigg Farm of Mariji and Curwen Hare, who won the supreme award at the Horizons Ballance Farm Environment Awards.