The biennial Seafood Sustainability and Innovation Awards were held at Parliament in September
The Awards celebrate and recognise the individuals, businesses, iwi organisations, and not-for-profits who are using innovation and imagination to drive the seafood sector forward to a sustainable and prosperous future, says Thea Wallace, Director Strategy and Governance, Fisheries New Zealand.
“It was great to be able to celebrate such a diverse range of achievements of people from across the seafood sector,” Thea Wallace says.
Amongst the winners were projects to re-seed tens of thousands of juvenile pāua, mussel farming innovation, and locally led marine management for Fiordland.
Winner of the Supreme Sustainability and Innovation Award, Professor Kura Paul-Burke (Ngāti Whakahemo, Ngāti Awa) of the University of Waikato, is a shining example of the mahi these Awards celebrate.
Professor Paul-Burke, who also received the Tangata Tiaki/Kaitiaki Award, is championing healthy and abundant oceans, using Māori knowledge combined with marine science to lead community-based restoration efforts, including reseeding 80,000 juvenile pāua around Great Barrier Island and Waiheke Island.
John Young, from Clearwater Mussels in the Marlborough Sounds won the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries Award, which celebrates champions and innovators making a lasting impact.
Mr Young has made a substantial contribution to the aquaculture industry over more than five decades, driving mussel farming innovation and playing a major role in its establishment in New Zealand.
The Fiordland Marine Guardians took out the Ocean Guardian Award for their work supporting one of New Zealand’s most iconic marine areas and ensuring fishing can be enjoyed there by generations to come. The Guardians include tangata whenua, commercial and recreational fishers, tourism operators, conservationists, and marine scientists, who have come together to protect Fiordland’s unique marine environment. They have led initiatives including efforts to rebuild blue cod and hāpuku stocks and manage invasive species, demonstrating their commitment to the long term health of the local ecosystem.
The full list of winners and more information about the awards can be found on MPI’s website:
mpi.govt.nz/seafood-awards
