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N O R T HER N TA S M A NI A
LOCAL LEGEND
George Doumouras O C C U PAT IO N FIS H M O N G ER G EO R G E T O W N L O C AL F O R 25 YE ARS
FISHING IS LIKE THE music industry – it will never disappear or end. It’s what you make it and it puts you in contact with the whole world. I was born in Greece and came to Australia in 1964. I first started as a fisherman in 1966, fishing for scallops in Victoria’s Port Phillip Bay. I did that for 26 years and then came to Tasmania in 1991 to take over the running of Tamar Fisheries in Beauty Point for my boss in Melbourne. Two years later, an abandoned fish factory came up for sale just across the Tamar River in George Town and I bought it. I wanted to do my own thing and pursue my business career, and I have been running George Town Seafoods ever since. The Tamar Valley is magnificent – although, the whole of Tasmania is beautiful. In terms of fishing, Northern Tasmania is renowned for the small inshore fishery, with waters up to 30 metres deep. Other than scallops, I fish for deep-sea species such as orange roughy, as well as shark, ling, dory and trevalla. For about 15 years, I was the biggest producer of orange roughy, with the main volume being exported to the United States. From 2002, when orange roughy was slowly depleting, we went through a transition. I bought a trawler called Silent Victory. We use it to catch different market fish to supply customers throughout Tasmania.
WHILE YOU’RE IN NORTHERN TASSIE … 1. Watch the sunset over the Tamar River from the riverbank. 2. Go sailing and fishing on the estuary. 3. Enjoy a meal at Gray’s Hotel on Macquarie Street in George Town, York Cove (yorkcove. com.au) or The Pier Hotel (pierhotel.com.au).
These days we also support our own fresh fish outlet in George Town and two farmers’ markets in Launceston and Hobart. I’ve always enjoyed fishing but I don’t do it myself anymore. I have people who run the boat and we have about 80 employees. One of my sons, Chris, works with me, and my younger son, Arthur, has a business in the fish markets in Melbourne. If I have free time, I like gardening or going to one of the excellent restaurants in Launceston, just 30 minutes away. I also support the three local restaurants – and they support us by ordering our fish. I live on the banks of the Tamar River estuary, where the sunsets are breathtaking. I’ve been around the world about three times but the view here is one of the best. There’s a strong sailing community and people catch flathead off the jett y and sometimes snapper a litt le further out. The river provides a lot of goodness, activity and pleasure for us all.
