Aotearoa is currently experiencing a nationwide shortage of sperm donors, with an increasing number of people turning to unregulated Facebook groups in their desperation to start a family.
In Aotearoa, it is illegal to pay donors for their sperm, leaving those who give their time, effort, and DNA uncompensated, even for small costs like parking.
Importing sperm from overseas is also prohibited, adding to the challenges faced by hopeful parents.
Fertility Associates group medical director, Andrew Murray, spoke to Tova O'Brien on Friday morning, to explain how much of an issue this is.
"What we've been finding over the past four or five years is the increasing demand for donor sperm, there are more and more single women needing donors and same-sex sex couples," Murray said.
"We're a country of limited population, the number of reproductive age men is limited and as a consequence, the demand vs supply combined with the constraints under our current laws means that the waiting time for a sperm donor is up to three years in our clinic."
O'Brien asked Murray about the risks of finding donors online, including potential health risks.
"Many of the men who are out there donating are unscreened they might say that they are but you want to have proof of that.
"The major risk is some of these guys are serial donors.
"What individual wants to know that they've got potentially 100 plus other siblings in the world, I think it's incredibly irresponsible what these guys are doing."
Listen to the full interview between Andrew Murray and Tova above.
You can also download the full interview on the Tova podcast, and listen on the go.
