East Coast Iwi celebrates AFL deal

East Coast Iwi Ngati Porou was out in force early August to celebrate a commercial arrangement between Ngati Porou Seafoods Ltd and Maori fisheries company Aotearoa Fisheries Limited (AFL). The celebrations were held at a dinner hosted by Ngati Porou in Gisborne following the signing of the agreement between the companies. Around 50 people gathered for the evening. AFL sold the Gisborne-based wholesale and retail seafood business operating under the Moana Pacific brand to Ngati Porou Seafoods Ltd, which will lease from AFL some of the wharf-based premises consisting of offices and the fish shop from which it will run the business.

The Chairman of Ngati Porou Seafoods Ltd Whaimutu Dewes and the Executive Chairman of Aotearoa Fisheries Ltd, Robin Hapi, seal the fisheries deal with a handshake outside what will become Ngati Porou's “Real Fresh” retail premises.

Under the arrangement, AFL has entered into a three-year contract to purchase Ngati Porou Seafood's Annual Catch Entitlements (ACE) and has guaranteed to supply the iwi's business with their seafood requirements. Executive Chairman Robin Hapi said AFL was pleased to enter into the agreement with Ngati Porou Seafoods. “The advantage for Ngati Porou Seafoods is that AFL will supply them with a variety of fish and shellfish to meet their seafood requirements,” he said.

Ngati Porou Seafoods general manager Mark Ngata told the Gisborne Herald this was a positive step forward for Ngati Porou and the wider Tairawhiti region. "Gisborne was once one of the best fishing ports in New Zealand, and people here are still passionate about seafood - we see it in the people who come into the store. From September we'll have a much wider range of fresh, frozen and value-added seafood for sale down there," he said.

The iwi will market the company under the name, “Real Fresh, from the Sea”. He said they planned on expanding the business and increasing its level of marketing. “The major alternatives in Gisborne are the supermarkets, which import their fish supplies from Auckland, often almost two days from the point of landing until it reaches the shopfront.”

In spite of the acquisition, there will not be an immediate boost in jobs for the people of Ngati Porou, Mark says. "We must develop the business to a position where employment opportunities are viable and sustainable, that's not going to be easy - as I see it the future of these premises on the wharf will be best suited for added-value processing and eventually the processing of aquaculture produce - it's going to take a little time to get to that point, and in the meantime we need to keep up-skilling our people in the fishing and seafood sector which the arrangement with AFL allows us to do.

“Many Ngati Porou people have already benefited from the scholarship programmes offered to iwi in marine biology, research, fishing vessels, quota management and a number of other areas … unfortunately once they're trained it's not always easy to keep them in Gisborne, however, the key is that they are participating in the industry and gaining a lot of knowledge and skills which Ngati Porou and its seafood business will benefit from it,” Mark said.

AFL was established as part of the allocation of the Maori fisheries settlement. Eighty percent of the dividends from the company will be distributed to iwi. Robin Hapi said AFL is the best vehicle for iwi to obtain a premium for their ACE. “The arrangements are very much a symbiotic relationship where ultimately all iwi will benefit from commercial quota arrangements with us,” he said.

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Tiakina ngā rawa hi ika, a tātou kaimoana mo ngā uri whakaheke
Protecting Māori fisheries assets for future generations