Their commitment to the industry was recognised at the sixth Tasmanian Seafood Awards on Saturday with an Industry Ambassador Award.

Tasmanian Seafood Industry Council chief executive Julian Harrington said the Rockliffs were presented with the award for their contribution and lifelong commitment to providing Tasmanian seafood to the world.

“An emotive and nostalgic presentation of the award humbled all attendees as they recogised the leadership of the Petuna founders,” Mr Harrington said.

Stunned to discover they had won such an award, Mr Rockliff said they were both “completely surprised”.

“It was lovely to receive an award like that. We feel humble about it,” Mr Rockcliff said.

Recognition from the industry he has been part of since he was a teenager gave Mr Rockliff the chance to consider how far he and his wife have come in the past 65 years.

“I always loved fishing and the sea. I used to fish seasonally when I first started and work with my father in the off season,” he said.

Some time fishing in Bridport proved fortuitous as it was there that the Rockcliffs met in 1949 – and love prompted a move to the North-East town for the fisherman.

The couple later moved to East Devonport, where they still live now, but Mr Rockliff initially combined fishing and working with Una’s father as they saved enough money to buy a bigger boat that would allow him to fish permanently.

“I went fishing full time in 1954 and stayed at sea for 5-6 days at a time,” Mr Rockliff said.

The Rockcliffs built their seafood business up slowly, buying or building new boats as their operation grew and travelling further out to sea to find grounds that had not been fished.

“We found orange roughy in 1982 and in 1986 found our first aggregation. That was the beginning of orange roughy,” Mr Rockliff said.

“Una started selling fish off the boat in East Devonport before we bought the shop [in East Devonport and Launceston]. That was the start of Petuna Seafoods,” he said.

Mr Rockliff’s voice becomes excited when he talks about how his industry has changed with technology.

“We started off with nothing and now plotters run over the sea bed and everything is marked,” Mr Rockliff said.

“When you sit down and think about it, it’s been interesting. We could never have done it without the people around us and our family,” he said.