With more than 25 years of experience in agri-business—and two decades in the kiwifruit industry—Bryan Parkes has worked to develop and evolve the agricultural industry through innovation and R&D. In his current role as Head of Innovation Acceleration at Zespri, Bryan is charged with building a team to enhance the brand’s innovation strategy, innovation process and the commercialisation of innovation outcomes. Bryan will work closely with start-ups and solutions providers to encourage innovation in the crucial areas of the environment, wellbeing, nutrition, and quality of kiwifruit.

Through his work with Zespri, and at times in conjunction with Plant & Food Research NZ, Bryan has helped to develop and evolve the kiwifruit new cultivar development programme from a sub-million-dollar programme to be one of the leading fruit cultivar development programmes in the world. 

Bryan first joined Zespri in December 2004 after 10 years of experience in developing and commercialising forest biotechnology for Carter Holt Harvey. 

Clare is CEO of AgriSea New Zealand, an award winning, intergenerational whānau seaweed company at the forefront of the biostimulant industry in NZ.  Clare spent her younger years working for Global Vision International, running projects with indigenous communities deep in the Amazon Rainforest. 

Her work focused on ensuring economic opportunities for these communities while keeping forests standing - this is the same approach that has led her to become so involved in the seaweed sector here and abroad.

Clare is a founding member of ANZSA and currently serves on the  ANZSA Board.

Dan is a marine ecologist in Cawthron’s Restoration Ecology team and co-lead of the Aquatic Protection and Enhancement Strategy team. He focuses on state of the environment monitoring and bottom-up ecological processes that may enhance recruitment of foundation species, such as seaweed. 

The core goal of Dan’s research is to identify and implement strategies for restorative measures in areas affected by multiple, interacting stressors, such as through seaweed-seeding programmes for rocky reef restoration. 

Jenny Marcroft supports the Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, Hon Shane Jones, by engaging directly with seafood sector stakeholders across New Zealand and sharing insights from these engagements to support his work. She has visited seaweed and aquaculture sites from Bluff to Northland, meeting with iwi, researchers, industry operators, and community-led initiatives. These stakeholders are advancing work in Undaria and kelp farming, mussel spat nurseries, and integrated marine restoration.

 The Under-Secretary is pleased to open the 2025 ANZSA Annual Summit and acknowledge the leadership, innovation, and collaborative spirit driving the sector forward.

Paul Morgan (Ngāti Rārua and Te Māhurehure, and Te Atiawa Taranaki), is one of New Zealand’s most experienced exporters and business leaders.

He is the former CEO of the Federation of Māori Authorities, which holds $10 billion of collective assets. Paul has vast experience as an investor in bio-tech, horticulture, aquaculture, and he is a former lobbyist. With his strong business and cultural networks, Paul has been doing business across Asia for 30 years. Paul was inducted into the NZ Business Hall of Fame in 2020.

Associate Professor Lyn Wise heads the Tissue Repair and Regeneration Lab at the University of Otago. She completed a PhD in Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Otago, where her interest in regenerative medicine was stimulated by her discovery as to how virus lesions could heal without scarring. After a stint at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in Melbourne, Lyn returned to the University of Otago to lead Health Research Council-funded programmes resulting in the commercialisation of biologic therapies for wound complications. 

Working with local and international, Lyn has since applied her suite of cellular and animal models to the development of various natural and synthetic molecules aimed at healing and regenerating human tissues. Recently, this has included Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment-funded research into materials generated from algal and fish sources that act as scaffolds for tissue production, with applications in both regenerative medicine and cellular agriculture. 

Octavio leads operations and science teams in New Zealand and Australia to sustainably produce high-quality Asparagopsis seaweed. His professional work is focused on helping innovation-driven businesses achieve their commercial goals while promoting environmental sustainability.

Octavio has held various professional roles in managing research and development (R&D) and innovation portfolios in the horticulture, water, and clean technology sectors. He earned both doctoral and master's degrees in Environmental Engineering and Microbial Biotechnology. Additionally, he holds certifications in business leadership and innovation from prestigious institutions, including MIT (USA), Stanford University (USA), and Delft University (The Netherlands), among other academic achievements.

Robert Bell has academic training in marine science, law and business and over 15 years of experience in aquaculture, including 7 years as Managing Director of Seafarms Group, a major shrimp farming enterprise and one of Australia’s largest aquaculture companies. He is currently Managing Director of Blueshift Consulting, a boutique management consulting and corporate advisory firm, specialising in the ‘blue economy’ and provides technical, management and organisational development services to companies in offshore energy and engineering, ports and shipping, fishing and aquaculture, as well as transactional, corporate financial, investment and valuation advice to corporates, the financial services sector and governments. 

Rob is also an investor in several aquaculture and underwater technology companies. Rob has worked with international certification body LRQA (formerly Lloyds Register) and assisted Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Environment Water & Agriculture (MEWA) on its reforms and ongoing development of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors in the Kingdom.

Stephanie Hopkins is a seasoned aquaculture policy specialist with nearly two decades of experience shaping New Zealand’s legislative and regulatory framework for sustainable seafood production. Currently Principal Advisor for Aquaculture Policy at the Ministry for Primary Industries, she works to develop effective policies that enable responsible industry growth. 

Stephanie’s career includes senior roles at Aquaculture New Zealand, MPI, and the Ministry of Fisheries, where she has led national policy programmes, collaborated with industry stakeholders, and championed enabling provisions at both central and regional government levels.