Scottish White Fish Producers’ Association (SWFPA) chief executive Mike Park was naturally delighted to be made an OBE but even more thrilled to learn why.
He was honoured specifically for his services to marine conservation, rather than his long and distinguished career in Scotland’s fishing industry.
“Marine conservation is very much the focus of work the industry has been doing,” he said.
“It is really the industry that has been recognised by this award.
“It’s recognition for what the sector has done in terms of building stocks and protecting the marine ecosystem.”
Mr Park, 58, is at the helm of Europe’s largest fishing association, representing about 220 boats and 1,400 fishers who contribute an estimated £158 million to Scotland’s economy every year.
He has played a leading role in fish stock conservation efforts in recent years, helping to achieve a major revival in numbers for cod and many other key North Sea species.
Mr Park’s first experience of life at sea dates back to his early childhood when going out on creel boats from the age of eight gave him a taster of what was to come.
He was soon earning a modest income from the fishing industry – 50p a day on a vessel skippered by his uncle.
By the age of 12 he was spending his school holidays on a line-boat operating off Rockall and he left Mackie Academy in Stonehaven at 16 to join the Merchant Navy.
After a year learning the ropes as a cadet navigator he went to sea, working in the Far East for the Benline shipping company and a weekly wage of £12.
He gave up the Merchant Navy for fishing, going on to own and skipper his own vessels.
Mr Park lives in Stonehaven with his wife, Janet. The couple have three grown-up children.