Higher Education Minister Bill Rammell said there was nothing new in students taking term-time jobs to supplement their lifestyle, but the abolition of up-front fees from September this year and bursaries for less well-off students would make money less of a concern.
"I doubt we're going to completely eliminate our dependence on oil, but we'll certainly be able to supplement the amount of oil we need in the short term, " he said.
Although total sales of the supplement run into the tens of millions of dollars every year, there have never been any long-term studies to determine whether its safe.