Eight winners announced in Fish 2.0 competition

Eight sustainable seafood businesses won cash prizes at the Fish 2.0 Innovation Forum in Palo Alto, California, U.S.A. last week, beating out a competitive field that had been narrowed down to 22 presenters.

Among the winners were Real Oyster Cult, based in Duxbury, Massachusetts, U.S.A. which delivers fresh oysters to customers with overnight shipping, and EnerGaia, which is based in Bangkok, Thailand, and grows spirulina, an algae superfood, on building rooftops in the Thai capital.  

“We’re elated that we won and also humbled – there are so many bright lights in the industry right now, and so much innovation going on,” said Eric Enno Tamm, CEO of winning company ThisFish, based out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which developed a tracing software to help seafood businesses record supply chain and improve efficiency. “Many of those companies approached me about our technology. It’s helpful to connect with the early adopters.”

Although they did not win a cash prize, the company American Unagi was particularly popular with the audience. American Unagi, from Thomaston, Maine, U.S.A. raises locally harvested glass eels, which are then used for sushi. Up until now, it has been difficult to provide the sushi industry with sustainably harvested eel, but American Unagi shows that trend may be reversing. Additionally, the company gained acclaim for providing jobs to a rural town.

A panel of investor-judges chose the winners, each of which presented an elevator pitch and also answered questions from the panel. The winners spanned three continents and each took home a cash prize of USD 5,000 (EUR 4,300). All of the winners are also eligible to receive Industry Connection prizes, which present the opportunity to gain business insight and expertise from leaders in the seafood industry. Fish 2.0 will announce the winners of these prizes next month. 

Fish 2.0, which organized the forum, is a Carmel, California, U.S.A.–based social enterprise that connects investors and entrepreneurs to grow the global sustainable seafood sector.