Tuesday, 03 November 2026
Sealord’s first hoki season operating under a new seasonal production model has been successful, validating a major change designed to improve efficiency and long-term sustainability for the company.
The Nelson wetfish factory and the Thomas Harrison fishing vessel now operate during the hoki season (May to September) rather than year-round, supported by significant factory upgrades and a new seasonal workforce model for this part of Sealord’s business.
The change has paid off, with near-record volumes of hoki processed, record fishmeal production, and lower production costs. Additionally, improvements to the factory layout removed bottlenecks, increased throughput and gave teams greater flexibility to align their processing activity with the time of the fish landing.
The season also demonstrated the calibre of Sealord’s staff and training programmes. More than 400 people were recruited and trained to work in the wetfish factory, including local employees and seasonal workers from overseas.
Sealord’s Operations GM Rui Ventura says strong collaboration by people in the company’s wetfish and by-products factories, cold store and support teams was a key factor in the season’s success.
“Record performances were achieved across several of our operations, including fishmeal production and container exports.”
Rui says the results show that seasonalising the business was the right decision, despite the tough call to change the business model and disestablish permanent roles.
“Last year was certainly challenging making the change. But it’s pleasing when it all comes together and you go, ‘Yep, it was the right thing to do for the business.’”
Sealord’s operations team is now reviewing the season to identify further improvements.
“Obviously, there are lessons learned that we are addressing, but they are more about tweaks. Last year was a step change; this year, the changes we make will be minor in comparison,” he says.