Sealord chief takes early retirement

Sealord's general manager of corporate services, Terry Horne, is leaving the company for an early retirement, which he says will open the way to other opportunities, reports www.megafishnet.com with reference to Nelson Mail.

Mr Horne, who turns 57 this week, has already been appointed to the board of Nelson-Tasman Tourism Holdings, and said today he hoped other directorships and Nelson-based roles would follow.

Qualified in both law and accountancy, he has been with Sealord for 18 years, serving as a senior executive during the group's growth into a major international seafood company.

Chief executive Graham Stuart said Mr Horne had been recruited to oversee Sealord's listing on the sharemarket, a change which didn't go ahead, and had since been a trusted adviser to the board as well as four chief executives, and navigated Sealord successfully through three major shareholding changes.

He said Mr Horne had responsibility for human resources and legal matters and had been a trustee of the Sealord superannuation scheme.

"Often he has been called upon to represent the company's interests in extremely difficult circumstances. In discharging these responsibilities, Terry has come to be regarded as being very fair-minded and has won widespread respect."

Mr Horne's responsibilities will be shared by Tim Silverstone, who will take over the job of company secretary, and Siobhan Cohen, who will head human resources.

Mr Horne today said he was keen to remain involved with business and the Nelson community.

"It's a really positive step and offers some opportunities and a bit of space to do other stuff.

"There are some other things I want to do in my life, and do them around Nelson."

Mr Horne hands over his responsibilities on Friday, but will continue to offer transitional help at Sealord.