Northland’s Ngāpuhi joins iwi fisheries collective to boost seafood returns

The partnership between the Ngāpuhi Asset Holding Company and the 19-strong Iwi Collective Partnership means greater scale in the global fishing market. Photo / NZME

Ngāpuhi’s commercial arm has joined with a collective of 19 other Māori fisheries entities, with the aim of using scale to get a better global price for its fish.

The Ngāpuhi Asset Holding Company partnered with the Iwi Collective Partnership (ICP) – Aotearoa’s largest tribal collective – for an initial 18 months.

Ngāpuhi was already the country’s largest quota-holding iwi, with its shares in Aotearoa Fisheries worth $25 million and its fish quota valued at $52.3m, according to its 2025 annual report.

But working with the ICP meant maximising price and opportunities because of the bigger volume of fish caught and sold, the company’s independent chairman Nick Wells said.

“Our quota is a taonga. Holding it is one thing, but as trusted investment managers for the iwi, we have a clear obligation to continue to explore ways to ensure it generates the best possible returns for Ngāpuhi whānau and hapū.”

Established in 2010, the ICP brought together fishing entities from across the North Island, including Northland’s Te Rarawa.

The partnership would expand the species diversity of annual catch entitlement available to ICP members, with Ngāpuhi’s quota of inshore and deepwater species.

The collective would now manage 20,000 metric tonnes of annual fishing rights across 123 species, supplying seafood to global markets through commercial partnerships with fisheries companies.

But Wells said the partnership was not just about increasing scale but two like-minded organisations joining forces.

Shared kaupapa included good management of the fisheries and ensuring all iwi entities involved benefit, no matter their size, he said.

Ngāpuhi Asset Holding Company independent chairman Nick Wells says the partnership means maximising price and opportunities for fish caught.

Ngāpuhi Asset Holding Company chief executive Matthew Mudford, who took up the role in February, said there was encouraging potential with the partnership.

“The collective is already a powerhouse of like-minded Māori fisheries entities with over 15 years’ of operational experience and a proven track record in iwi fisheries.”

This would give Ngāpuhi an opportunity to improve returns, he said.

Monday’s announcement came eight months after the company‘s Kaikohe Berries signed a 9.5-year partnership with Australasian horticulture business T&G Fresh.

Wells said such high-value partnerships were a deliberate way for the company to grow and he expected more announcements to come.

Growth would not only allow the company to deliver more dividend to Te Rūnanga-ā-iwi-ō-Ngāpuhi but allow it to be more innovative in what it offered its people, he said.

One example it was looking at was an IwiSaver project, which would help Ngāpuhi’s youngest to save, getting value from compounding interest and learning financial literacy at the same time, Wells said.

Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.