The Top 25: Riverence Q&A

Riverence is featured in The Top 25: Sustainability & Conservation list, published by SeafoodSource on 24 September, 2020.

SeafoodSource: What kind of trends have informed Riverence’s latest sustainability/conservation efforts?

Riverence: When purchasing seafood, consumers are concerned about country of origin, traceability, environmental and social impact, contaminants, sustainability, and price. These trends have driven our sustainability efforts not only because of consumer demand, but also because they are aligned with our company mission to provide seafood that is local, safe, traceable, healthful, certified, and impactful. Our efforts to produce high quality seafood in the U.S.A. are centered around each of these trends and leads our decision-making process to ensure we produce the healthiest local fish at a fair price without jeopardizing any aspect of our mission. 

SeafoodSource: What key features serve to set Riverence’s sustainable seafood offerings apart in the market?

Riverence: Several key features that set Riverence seafood offerings apart from others are location, vertical integration, quality, and sustainability. First, Riverence is unique in that we produce high-quality rainbow trout and steelhead in the United States. Our operations collectively provide 320 jobs, which strengthens our local economy and creates community. Most seafood consumed domestically today is imported, and we are proud to say our quality products are made in the U.S.A.    

Second, we are vertically integrated from egg production to distribution. Riverence owns and operates brood facilities to ensure egg supply consistency, source traceability, and superior genetics. In addition, we operate land-based spring water grow out farms, which are within close proximity to our BAP- and USDC-certified processing facility. Our finished products are then distributed nationwide by our employee team drivers in our fleet of trucks. 

Third, we are committed to producing the highest quality and healthiest products available to our customers. Our fish live in pure rocky mountain spring water and are fed a complete nutritional profile from our health-focused proprietary feed. We source the finest certified feed ingredients as local as possible to minimize environmental impact and to impart a high omega-3 content with near zero contaminants. Our fish are harvested, processed and shipped within a day, which guarantees the freshest local seafood possible.     

Lastly, Riverence’s commitment to sustainability is what drives our company to do more with less. From our no-escape land-based raceways that allow collection and removal of solid wastes for composting to our processing facility that fully utilizes co-products generated from the operation for pet food and fertilizer, our company has been designed to minimize our environmental impact and to mitigate waste. We also produce electricity with a no-impact hydroelectric power generation facility at our largest farm.  

SeafoodSource: How does sustainability factor into your overall mission and strategy as a business?

Riverence: Riverence is committed to producing responsible high-quality seafood products that benefit our environment and communities. Our sustainability strategy is to be mindful of the impact we have on ecosystems and the people that thrive in our communities. With the support of science and technology, our experienced employees, and the local community, we continually strive for a development path that is as sustainable as possible in the short term and regenerative in the long term.  

SeafoodSource: How does Riverence approach sustainable, responsible development?  

Riverence: We believe efficiency is critical to sustainable development. Whether it’s electricity use, processing, packaging, or farming, Riverence’s approach to sustainable development starts with identifying inefficiencies with the greatest impact and then prioritizing our efforts to minimize our footprint. Some of the initiatives may be small in scale, but each step of continual improvement evolves our company and culture towards a sustainable future.