Going Large - with Jonathan Large

Jonathan Large brings a lifetime of mussel industry experience as new MFA President

Q) What is your connection with the Marlborough Sounds?

A) I grew up spending long weekends and holidays in the Sounds at the family bach. From the age of six I used to row out and tie up to the mooring in front of the bach and fish all day until mum would bang on the frying pan to signal it was time to come in for dinner. As I got older I would go out further afield chasing larger fish and in bigger boats. I’d watch the mussel boats and could name them all. I remember thinking it would be great to work on them and then pretend our dingy was a mussel farm work boat.

Q)You’ve had a life-long association with mussels – where did it begin?
A) Dad was a third generation rose grower who also had a mussel farm at Nydia Bay but I wasn’t allowed to go out to it until I was five. On the first trip out of Havelock, we had the traditional feed of bacon and eggs before loading cotton tubes and tying snoods on the steam. The farm was half on raft culture and half in full stope after lines. I remember hanging the droppers off nails on the raft. After my first visit, I looked for every opportunity to go back and help Dad, even if it meant skipping school. And every school holiday from when I was 10 years old I worked on the Marlborough Perna seeding vessel to earn pocket money.

Q) As an 8-year-old you became arguably the industry’s youngest independent marine farmer – what happened to that farm?
A) I built a ‘farm’ for blue and green mussels, scallops and oysters in front of the family bach - the scallops died and the rest did ok. I had about 200 shellfish and I wanted to expand but Dad didn’t think it was a good idea so we just ate the ones that were there. I also built a ‘farm’ in the river at the edge of our property and kept Koura (fresh water crayfish) and fed them Tux dog biscuits.

Q)How did you go from a little boy with a couple of self-built farms to overseeing the production of 3,000 tonnes across 18 farms for Cedenco?
A)I left school at 16 and studied fisheries technology for a year before taking a job fishing for crayfish in Fiordland. But after a season I was keen to get back to the Marlborough Sounds and took up a job on the newly built Pelorus Image for Pickering, Brownlee and Antunovich as a deckhand working for skipper Mike Holland. This was my first full time job in the mussel industry. After an OE, I got back to New Zealand with just enough money to buy a can of Coke and a steak and cheese pie before Rob Pooley offered me a job working on his farm boat at Elaine Bay Aquaculture. After a year, I was managing the spat supply for EBA, which became part of Sealord, including everything from spat catching to final seeding, and went on to manage the wider farming operations which included farm development and managing contract growers. After Sealord sold its South Island farms I continued to manage its leased farms and also took over the Coromandel farming operations until 2012 when it was rolled into the NIML joint venture. And in 2016 I started with Cedenco Aquaculture Limited as South Island Farm Manager. This involves total responsibility for all crop grown in the South Island and future development.

Q)Do you have any farms of your own?
A) I own and operate the original family farm in Nydia Bay where I did my first day’s work. I bought it off my father’s estate in 2008, for sentimental reasons and to keep it in the family.

Q)You’ve been voted in as the new President of the Marine Farming Association – why take on the role?
A) I’m passionate about the aquaculture industry and I want to see it flourish in the Top of the South and continually improve and take advantage of any new opportunities that may arise. That’s what the MFA stands for and it’s what all of our members are working collectively to deliver. There’s a fantastic culture in the organisation – no one wears a suit, each member gets one vote regardless of size, and we all want to see the industry flourish and protect the natural environment. As President, I want to follow on from Rob Pooley’s leadership over the previous 15 years to promote the rights and interests of all members from those with one farm to the large corporate owners. I’ve had a varied background and feel I understand the interests of all members – big and small. One of the issues closest to my heart is that I want to see the industry continue to improve its environmental responsibility, and that’s why I’m also the Chairman of the Environment and Compliance Committee which has recently introduced the Environmental Certification programme for marine farmers.

Q) What are your priorities in the role?

A) In the short term we will continue our focus on marine farm renewals and working with policy makers and the stakeholders to deliver policy that will give all our farmers the right to operate beyond 2024/5. Social license remains important and we will be working more collaboratively with all stakeholders to achieve better outcomes for the collective industry in the long term. Part of that is education and we will be working to help communities understand how marine farming works. We’re also looking at new opportunities for the industry and how to get more value from the current industry.

Q)What do you see as the best opportunities for local growth?
A) New space outside the Sounds, new species and adding value to the current products like nutraceuticals and food ingredients/flavouring.

Q)The MFA is part of a working group established by the Marlborough District Council to review the marine farming provisions of the region’s resource management planning framework – how important is this process for the industry and what’s your ideal outcome?
A) It’s very important for our industry to understand and collaborate with other stakeholders. We need to get through the marine farming provisions in the Plan and have a positive outcome for our industry and other stakeholders that recognises that both the industry and the community have a place and I believe can co-exist in a harmonious way in the Sounds. We, as industry need to lead this process by stepping forward and letting the community know that we want to work collaboratively. Ultimately, we want our right to exist and function to be recognised and protected and this is essential to achieving that.

Q) Any key lessons the MFA has experienced that other regions can learn from?
A) It is important to have a strong and dedicated Executive Committee who fairly represents the whole industry in the region, from the small one farm owner to the large corporate. The Committee must have a common goal and be heading in the same direction.

Q) In your spare time, you also farm three hectares of grapes on your property – how has that changed your perspective on mussel farming?
A) Marine farming is in the public space and you are a custodian of that space, there is a responsibility to farm with the least amount of impact to the environment. Mussels are naturally grown organically. Growing grapes requires human intervention to achieve the best outcomes.

Q) If you had friends visiting from another country, which would you serve to really impress them – your mussels or your wine?
A) Both of course, we are very lucky that Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc is a perfect match with Marlborough green lipped mussels! n