The king of salmon
8th August 2011 by Andrew Matheson, Manila | 5 Comments
New Zealand aquaculture had a boost this month thanks to links with the Philippines.
New Zealand’s second-largest salmon processing company, Prime Foods New Zealand, has joined forces with the leading canned tuna producer in the Philippines, Alliance Select Foods International. They’ve established a joint venture company called Big Glory Bay Salmon and Seafood. It’s an impressive name, but not one that was just made up from nothing. The company takes its title from an inlet on New Zealand’s southern-most inhabited island, Stewart Island. Big Glory Bay is where most of Prime Foods’ King salmon is farmed, and where salmon farming began in New Zealand less than 30 years ago.
Prime New Zealand salmon fillets being processed in the Philippines
To me it makes a lot of sense for these companies to get together. Prime Foods New Zealand is a family business, started by Henry Studholme in 1994. In less than 20 years it has grown to be a major supplier of smoked salmon in New Zealand and has developed a healthy export trade. But Henry wanted to do more, especially in Asia, and travelled the region looking for a company to link up with. Fortunately he found the Philippines, and the people at what was then called Alliance Tuna.
Alliance is big. It cans more than 200 tonnes of tuna every day at its factories in the Philippines and Indonesia, and exports to at least 60 countries. It’s a significant player in the fish trade but it was looking for more too, and the opportunity to diversify beyond tuna. So it invested in Prime Foods New Zealand, changed its own name to Alliance Select Foods International, and added salmon to its portfolio of quality fish products.
This is a great story of complementarity and playing to strengths: New Zealand expertise in aquaculture and producing high-quality salmon for the world’s dining tables; the established brand of “Prime Smoke” salmon and New Zealand’s reputation for quality food products. The strengths of New Zealand aquaculture — a clean environment, sustainable management, and salmon farming without the use of chemicals or drugs complement the Philippines’ cost-competitive environment and central location in Asia. And then there’s Alliance Select Food International’s established marketing channels in fish products, capital base as a listed company, its passion for quality food products and quest for innovation.
Preparing retail packs of New Zealand smoked salmon
I first met Henry Studholme and Alliance’s effervescent CEO Jonathan Dee in Manila two years ago, when they were establishing the joint venture that is now Big Glory Bay Salmon and Seafood. Since then they’ve built and equipped a modern processing facility in General Santos city in the southern Philippines, and trained staff in the delicate arts of smoking, processing and packing high quality salmon. The plant is already operating and export orders are being filled. The facility has plenty of room for expansion, and Jonathan and Henry have great plans for the future.
I was delighted to travel last week to General Santos city for the official opening of the Big Glory Bay salmon processing facility. The event was the culmination of two years’ hard work, and the beginning of an exciting partnership. The new markets that Big Glory Bay will develop in Asia and beyond will create a lot of demand for New Zealand King salmon, which will help boost aquaculture in New Zealand as it develops to be the country’s next billion dollar industry.
And before you ask — Prime Smoke salmon will be available in the Philippines. Though the joint venture business in the Philippines is focussing on export markets first, I am assured the company will be appointing a Philippine distributor. So you’ll be able to tuck into a type of salmon that is noticeably different from the Atlantic salmon farmed in most other countries. It has a more tender and delicate texture that’s gained a strong reputation around the world. This salmon also has the highest natural oil content of all salmon varieties, making it a rich source of healthy Omega-3. It’s the best. As Henry Studholme said to me: “It’s not called King salmon for nothing”.
Enjoy!
Interesting. China should be a good market for this salmon. Norway once had a lock on this product, but following the political fallout after that country’s Nobel Prize committee gave the peace prize to Liu Xiao Bo, the Beijing authorities have been carrying out a low-level boycott of Norwegian salmon, replacing it with imports from Scotland. Perhaps there should be an opening for the N.Z. product, eh?
52,000 tonnes of Tuna per year. Are you sure?
Philip
The company says it produces 200 tonnes per day at its factories in General Santos and in Sulawesi (http://www.allianceselectfoods.com/). I suspect they work more than a five-day week, so the total could be even higher! I’ve seen the GenSan tuna factory and it really is huge.
Andrew
I just watched a TVNZ documentary on the sustainability of the worlds fish stocks. It was very worrying. NZ is doing the best at maintaining fish stocks but I fear fish will become a forgotten food one day.
As one economist said, the goal of every production is consumption – this is something that the sales people of Big Glory Salmon has taken quite lightly, I should say in my case. I am a seafood distributor and I went to GenSan to, among other things, source out new products for distribution. After the Tuna Congress dinner at the driving range of Royale Hotel, we went straight to Robinsons where sashimi night was happening and there I saw this product. I told them my intention to distribute it and my group even ordered and consumed some on the spot. I was asking for pricelist. They had no extra printed one so I was even asking for the one they have. They said they’ll email it to me. The following day I went back to Manila. Today, 6 days later I still have to receive their pricelist. And no, it’s not in my spam folder too, I did search because I am very interested (my interest was further fueled by the free sample I brought that my tasters here said was GOOD!). Yes, I do have their card and contact number and I could call anytime. But as a starting company eager to widen their reach, they should be more interested than I am. After this, I will still contact them because their product is worth a try, but I am just saying REPRIMAND YOUR SALES PEOPLE…THEY MAY BE LOSING CLIENTS THIS EARLY IN THE GAME.