North Island Mussels Ltd to close Tauranga processing plant this month, 139 jobs lost

North Island Mussels Limited’s processing plant in Greerton will close this month. Photo / NZME

Tauranga-based North Island Mussels Limited’s processing plant in Greerton is set to close, resulting in 139 job losses.

North Island Mussels Ltd (NIML) is a 50/50 joint venture between Sanford Limited and Cedenco Aquaculture Ltd, to farm, process and sell North Island green-lipped mussels, also known as greenshell mussels.

Seafood company Sanford confirmed the closure of NIML’s processing plant in Glenlyon Ave in a written statement sent to the Bay of Plenty Times by Sanford chief financial officer Paul Alston in response to inquiries.

Alston’s statement said the decision to close the processing plant in mid-June, resulting in 139 job losses, was based on several factors.

North Island Mussels Ltd on Glenlyon Avenue in Greerton, Tauranga. Photo / Alex Cairns

These included “challenging weather patterns, significant crop mortalities and poor yielding crops in the North Island”, resulting in declining volumes.

“It has become clear that there is insufficient consistent crop in the North Island to support more than one major mussel processing plant in the region and NIML will be outsourcing its processing to an independent third party.”

“Aligning staffing needs and the forecasted volume at our manufacturing facilities is paramount for the business to succeed, and based on the forecast volume for the remainder of the financial year and beyond, NIML is unable to profitably process mussels in Tauranga,” the statement said.

Alston said the final date of closure of the NIML processing plant had “not yet been made” and “depended on [mussel] crop availability”. It had not been sold and was still operational.

Consultation with staff began in early April and staff were told of the closure on April 30.

“Throughout this difficult time, NIML communicated openly with its employees and provided assistance to support staff to secure alternative employment opportunities.”

139 jobs will be lost when North Island Mussels Limited’s processing plant in Tauranga closes. Photo / NZME

The closure did not impact Sanford’s South Island operations, nor the mussel farming operations in Coromandel.

Alston said NIML had hosted job fairs for affected Tauranga staff attended by local employers, governmental representatives such as the Ministry of Social Development, and Sanford’s recruitment team sharing information about vacancies at other sites across the country. He said the company did not know how many staff had secured new employment.

The Bay of Plenty Times asked for the name of the third party NIML intended to outsource the mussel processing to.

Alston said NIML was “still working on those agreements”, which were not yet finalised.

The company’s website said the Tauranga operation contained a state-of-the-art processing unit that used “the world’s first robotic mussel opening equipment with laser and camera technology”.

It said the company farmed more than 900 long lines in North Island aquaculture marine areas.

The processing season was typically from October to July. People in Tauranga employed during the season ranged from technicians of robotic equipment, managers, drivers and process workers.

Support for affected staff

Jacob Davies, the Ministry of Social Development’s Bay of Plenty regional commissioner, said it was a “difficult time” for affected plant workers.

Ministry staff were helping them look for new jobs and attended the two job fairs at the plant last week.

Some had already secured roles. The ministry was working with larger employers to find more jobs and was providing income support in the meantime to eligible affected workers.

“We have a range of available Bay of Plenty jobs on our books with employers who are keen to hire.”

This included work in the kiwifruit industry, administration, accommodation, food, transport, warehousing and healthcare.

Tauranga's Ministry of Social Development building on Durham St. Photo / Andrew Warner

“We want to ensure any affected staff understand what support is available to them, including training for new work opportunities. We also have a wide range of subsidies and initiatives to support employers to take on new staff.”

Economic development agency Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt said the closure of the North Island Mussels Ltd plant was “lamentable” and the loss of 139 jobs was significant for the area.

“We feel for the staff and understand they are getting assistance from various organisations. While this loss is bad for our area at this point in time, we expect the longer-term prospects for high-value aquaculture in the Bay to be strong.”

Sandra Conchie is a senior journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post who has been a journalist for 24 years. She mainly covers police, court and other justice stories, as well as general news. She has been a Canon Media Awards regional/community reporter of the year.