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A new direct shipping route between Tasmania and Nelson is expected to reduce cost, complexity and risk for the aquaculture industry in New Zealand.
A new direct shipping route between Tasmania in Australia and Nelson is scheduled to start in September, providing a boost to industry on both sides of the Tasman.
Announced at Port Nelson on Wednesday by Tasmanian fish food producer BioMar Australia, the direct route between Tasmania and a trio of New Zealand ports – Nelson, Bluff and Lyttleton – is expected to streamline the supply chain and mitigate risk.
It comes after supplies to New Zealand were interrupted during the Covid-19 pandemic, causing delays for the aquaculture industry.
The announcement was made during a Tasmanian Government trade delegation visit this week to the Nelson-Tasman region.
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New Zealand King Salmon chief executive Grant Rosewarne says the company’s Blue Endeavour plan, once approved, will deliver an additional 10,000 tonnes a year of King salmon.
BioMar Australia managing director David Whyte said the direct route “will avoid ships going via the Port of Melbourne for documentation and other cargo pick-ups, ensuring faster, cheaper and ultimately a more efficient process for the producer and the customer in New Zealand”.
The company was proud to be one of Tasmania’s largest fish food producers.
“Our state-of-the-art mill processes raw material into high-performance food for salmon, trout, prawns and other farmed marine species,” Whyte said. “BioMar plays a significant role in supporting the aquaculture industry in Tasmania whilst also exporting to New Zealand in substantial quantities.”
Tasmanian Government Minister for Primary Industries and Water Jo Palmer said the Tasmanian Government’s trade team had been collaborating with Biosecurity Tasmania, the Ministry for Primary Industries in New Zealand and industry over the past few months “to ensure this new process is safely administered and complies with all Australian and NZ regulations”.
“Streamlining of coastal freight links between Tasmania and New Zealand will underpin offshore aquaculture across the two countries,” Palmer said. “The importance of our shared environmental values to produce sustainable, healthy food from the sea, our commitment to strong biosecurity and the opportunity to support the development of a vibrant transition to farming more exposed waters have provided both governments a clear reason to forge closer ties and reduce complexity.”
News of the direct route comes as the aquaculture industry in New Zealand looks to expand via offshore salmon farming.
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The proposed location of New Zealand King Salmon’s open ocean farm Blue Endeavour, 7km north of Cape Lambert in Cook Strait.
New Zealand King Salmon chief executive Grant Rosewarne said New Zealand produced 16,000 tonnes of salmon in the industry’s current form.
“Offshore farming offers a route to increase production with two applications currently being assessed,” Rosewarne said. “Our Blue Endeavour plan, when approved, will deliver an additional 10,000 tonnes a year of King salmon. This initiative from BioMar reduces cost, improves food security and underpins our plans to farm in more exposed locations.”
Port Nelson chief executive Hugh Morrison said the direct delivery of fish feed from Tasmania would reduce cost, complexity and risk “as well as underpinning a trans-Tasman shipping service to make movement of goods between New Zealand, Tasmania and the southeast of Australia more efficient”.
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The Tasmanian Government will work closely with BioMar to develop and expand this service to meet the future market needs.
Nelson Regional Development Agency chief executive Fiona Wilson said the Nelson-Tasman region was “looking to capitalise on this activity as part of our blue economy priority”.
“We are looking forward to continuing to build the relationship between Nelson-Tasman and Tasmania,” Wilson said.
