The solutions “Seaspiracy” missed

“Seaspiracy,” a new documentary from director Ali Tabrizi, brings much-needed attention to the welfare of our oceans. We are rapidly moving past the tipping point — and urgently need to change how we approach protecting the ocean.

The Netflix documentary is igniting a new conversation around the mistreatment of the ocean, which is earth’s life support system. We value the that the film brings to light certain fishing and aquaculture practices that need to end, but the story it tells is incomplete; it excludes those who are making needed change, which is a disservice not only to them but also to consumers who genuinely want to do better and make better choices.

The film oversimplifies a problem as intricate and interconnected as the ocean’s ecosystem into one problem and one solution: the root of our ocean’s demise is the demand for seafood, so we should stop eating fish. But is any problem ever that simple? Three billion people across the globe depend on seafood as their primary source of protein and fish supply 17 percent of all the protein consumed in the world.

Dr. Sylvia Earle, who was prominently featured in the documentary, is what inspired us to try and change the seafood industry and restore our remarkable oceans. I first met her when I was the director of the TED Prize, where we were working to fulfill her wish to create ocean reserves known as “hope spots.” It was through this journey that I met my partner Mike and we recognized that aquaculture — when done right — could be a clean, traceable way to take pressure off of the ocean as well as workers who are too often abused.

Unfortunately, what was shown in the documentary entirely excludes the remarkable efforts underway by entrepreneurs, farmers, environmentalists, and technologists who are making aquaculture one of the most interesting and exciting ways to save our ocean.

The Solutions

First, here’s the background on aquaculture. It uses very little land, water, or feed and has one of the smallest resource footprints of any animal protein production. The aquaculture industry currently produces less than .5 percent of the total global greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint globally, while beef production is 15 percent of global GHG, and we can still do better. Alternative feed ingredients are being produced to resolve major feed challenges, and tech and digitization are optimizing practices and efficiencies. Aquaculture also has untapped potential for transparency. It is possible to trace the life of a farmed fish from a carefully selected egg to the point at which it arrives on your plate. Knowing the projected growth of aquaculture, we urgently need to make these good practices the norm.

We co-founded Aqua-Spark, the first investment fund to advance fish farming with care for the environment and human rights. We support companies and technologies that span alternative feed ingredients (insects, microbes, algae!)and disease-battling as well as the farms that are getting it right.

Here are some superstar examples that deserve their own documentary:

Calysta is a company that produces fully traceable microbial meal with an almost identical amino acid profile to fishmeal, eliminating fishmeal from a farmed fish or shrimp’s diet. As you saw in the documentary, feeding wild fish to grow farmed fish is one of the biggest areas to rectify in aquaculture.

Protix produces an insect-based alternative to fishmeal. Insects have the added benefit of offering a natural diet for fish, and because insects grow on food waste, they’re a carbon negative feed ingredient.

Both of these feed alternatives are also highly controlled and traceable, limiting the possibility of human rights violations — a priority alongside ocean health.

Proteon is reducing the need for antibiotics in farming with bacteriophages, which naturally protects animals and humans from bacteria and offers an alternative to antibiotics.

eFishery is a remarkable example of how a talented entrepreneur dedicated his life to improving the system, and created a technology that is changing aquaculture for the better. The Indonesian tech company eFishery was founded by Gibran el Farizy, who grew up with few resources, yet was determined to ensure people everywhere could afford access to healthy fish. His sensor-based feeding technology eliminates resource waste by detecting when fish and shrimp are hungry. eFishery reduces pollution and increases fish health and farmers’ bottom lines. It also improves the lives and product quality of tens of thousands of farmers, with massive potential to scale in a country (Indonesia) where there are 3.5 million aquaculture farmers. We want to support small businesses, and eFishery allows many to thrive, which is a critical counterpoint to massive industrialized farms.

Matorka is just one of the blue ribbon farms worth highlighting. Based in Iceland, Matorka has built a unique system to farm Arctic Char that uses only geothermal energy, untreated water, and a one-to-one feed conversion ratio. This means crystal clear water and operations that work in harmony with nature.

Chicoa is another example of a farm that is actively revitalizing its local community. What we saw in the documentary was a needed critique of globalization that leaves behind local communities as well as contaminants. Chicoa is kick-starting the freshwater aquaculture industry in Mozambique and is a low-cost, environmentally-friendly producer of quality protein in an area with nutritional challenges. With a management team that has worked together in Southern African aquaculture for over 20 years, Chicoa sets the highest standards — and goes well beyond just providing food; they also provide local training and upward mobility.

In Summary

This is a movement, and I could keep going with examples of the individuals, organizations, foundations, and partnerships improving this industry and collectively saving our ocean and waterways. But in short, let’s support the wide-ranging and far-reaching innovations dedicated to building resilient and healthy food systems. Because no single solution will ensure food security. Rather than reserving healthy proteins and nutrients for only those who can afford them, let’s improve, strengthen, and scale what is working for both the planet and its species. Instead of painting a portrait in just black and white — and making people feel hopeless — let’s recognize the many human beings who are dedicating their work to building better systems and a more sustainable and equitable future for us all.

For consumers: we must educate ourselves about food production and demand both transparency and better practices. Buyers and retailers have a big role to play, but the demand must come from every individual.

For investors: we’ve resolved a lot of the challenges in aquaculture, but it’s going to require immense capital to scale these solutions. It is not easy to make change, and these changemakers need some wind at their backs and an influx of capital to support their efforts.