16 | FISHERIES SECTOR Harbour Fish Long-term sustainability a core priority Kim Newth Local South Island mainstay species for Harbour Fish through winter include Blue Cod. No-one cares more about the long-term sustainability of the Otago-Southland fishery resource than the Cooper brothers whose way of life is so closely connected with this wild coastal environment. Fisherman Damon Cooper and his brother Anton are the backbone of Dunedin-based Harbour Fish, a seafood company specialising in wild-caught fish from the bottom of the South Island. Together, they have transformed the company from a small seafood retailer and wholesaler in Port Chalmers into a multi-site, vertically integrated family-owned and operated enterprise. “For us it’s a real privilege to be able to provide a precious and nutritious protein source from the bottom of the South Island to our customers around the world,” says General Manager Aaron Cooper, noting that the family business is proud to support their local fishers in best practice operations and to employ a number of local people at their sites in Sawyers Bay and Bluff, and in their retail stores. “We own our own supply chain so we can guarantee the provenance of our fish and deliver only the freshest wild-caught South Island product.” Along with retail stores in central Dunedin and Queenstown, Harbour Fish has an online store that was set up in response to the Covid challenges. It has worked really well for the business, ensuring the fish could still be caught, processed and sold even in lockdown. The online option has endured as a popular choice for many customers. Local South Island mainstay species for Harbour Fish through winter include Blue Cod, Gurnard, Sole, Flounder and Monk, switching to the likes of Tarakihi, Moki and Warehou in the summer months. Harbour Fish is committed to sustainability as a core priority. Their fish is caught under the Quota Management System (QMS) by inshore fishing boats. The QMS is reviewed every year to make sure the right catch limits are set, by species and region. Aaron says, “We work to actively mitigate our environmental impact through our supply chain - at sea, in our processing facilities and through our sales channels. We vacuum-pack our fish in home-compostable packaging wherever possible, and our factory offal is picked up to be made into fertilizer. If you shop in one of our retail stores your fish is wrapped in greaseproof paper and brown paper to limit our use of plastic.” Our Dunedin based company is large enough to provide all your packaging supplies, yet small enough to care. 03 455 5206 South Canterbury | Otago | Central Otago | Southland Pleased to be supporting Harbour fish www.otagopackaging.co.nz “We own our own supply chain so we can guarantee the provenance of our fish and deliver only the freshest wild-caught South Island product.” Consumers can play their own part in fishery sustainability practices. Harbour Fish recommends eating a little of a wide variety of fish rather than a lot of a few of them. Their domestic marketing has focussed on championing lesser-known fish varieties and encourage their customers to try something new. “We like to see lesser-known cuts and varieties of fish being tried. Just like in the meat world, they’re usually just as delicious and a whole lot more affordable, but people aren’t as familiar with how to prepare them.” Invariably, once people step outside their comfort zone, they are pleasantly surprised. Harbour Fish works with their fishers to ensure best practice care standards are met and that they deliver the freshest catch possible. Fish is iced and chilled as quickly as possible when it’s landed at sea before coming ashore for processing at the Harbour Fish plants in Dunedin and Bluff. “Often customers eat our fish within 24-48 hours of it being harvested.” Harbour Fish has long term relationships with their inshore fishing crews who work on the challenging seas of the lower east coast of the South Island. “Many of the boats are led by our owner-operator skippers and some of these guys are second, third or even fourth generation fishers,” says Aaron. “They’re just as passionate as we are about the long-term future of our fishery and we feel lucky to work with them and take their catch to market.”
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDc2Mzg=