Known as keen supporters of New Zealand First in past elections, the Vela family would have been delighted with the 2017 post-election move by leader Winston Peters to kill off legislation to establish the Kermadec Ocean Sanctuary and make it off limits to Vela Fishing.
Founded in 1976 by Sir Peter Vela and his late brother Philip, Hamilton-based Vela Fishing is acknowledged as the largest privately owned quota holder in the country and has played a major role in developing key international markets for New Zealand seafood.
Filip Vela migrated from the Dalmatian coast to New Zealand in 1929 and his sons have been instrumental in the growth of the Hoki, Orange Roughy, Tuna and Squid industries. Proud of its history of innovation, Vela Fishing was the first to use factory freezer class fishing vessels to produce once-frozen fillet product and they were the first to export New Zealand fillet products to the UK and US markets.
No stranger to Ascot, where he has driven up the home straight in a horse-drawn carriage with the Queen, Sir Peter has also developed an international reputation as a thoroughbred breeder at Pencarrow Stud near Cambridge where 150 broodmares roam on 300ha of mineral-rich countryside.
Sir Peter’s passion for thoroughbreds also extends to his ownership of NZ Bloodstock at Karaka, which was bought from Wrightson Bloodstock in 1997 and has become a one-stop shop for buyers and sellers by providing insurance, transport and airfreight services. Managed by his daughters Petrea and Victoria, NZ Bloodstock sponsors the annual Karaka Millions race meeting at Ellerslie, which supported two $1 million events in 2018.
Normally resident in the UK with his wife Pam, they venture home during the New Zealand summer to enjoy the horse racing and relax at their 449ha property at Opito Bay on the Coromandel Peninsula, which includes a private lodge and historic homestead.