Sustainable seafood company Blueyou is at the forefront of transforming the food we eat

I collaborate with chefs and operators to turn these stories into unforgettable food experiences to educate and inspire positive change. Together, we host and sponsor various events within local food communities, bringing together like-minded individuals and responsible businesses with a shared ambition to transform the food industry.

What are the biggest challenges facing the sustainable seafood industry today, and how is Blueyou addressing these challenges?
The seafood sector is highly competitive and pricing is the decisive factor in the commercial business. But socially inclusive and planet-friendly food has its price. Most buyers and consumers don’t realise that cheap seafood comes at a high price for life on our planet, factory workers and coastal communities. 

As long as the conventional industry can produce food without integrating the huge externalities (cost of damage to our planet and climate) into their pricing, the sustainable seafood movement will struggle to gain more traction.

Can you tell us more about what a future of restorative, socially inclusive, and climate-smart seafood looks like?
We believe that harvested the right way, seafood has the power to change our global food system and contribute to planetary health. The transformation starts with empowering coastal communities as the active stewards of our oceans. Rewilding coastal habitats by restorative aquaculture and focusing on farming lower trophic species such as bivalve molluscs, crabs, shrimp and filter-feeding fish will allow us to cut the existent dependency on land-based feed systems to feed high-energy diets to carnivorous species such as salmon and grouper.

We need to think about aquaculture differently to realise the true potential of blue foods. More than 75 per cent of the carbon footprint of feed-based farmed fish or shrimp comes through the feed. Aquaculture’s true potential is in the promotion of species and rearing systems which do not require any feed, fertilisers and chemicals. Mother Nature has all the answers we need.

How does Blueyou contribute to promoting sustainable seafood practices, and what initiatives has the company undertaken in this area?
Blueyou is actively reaching out to fishing and farming communities while building partnerships with producers. Working with local authorities and NGOs, we deploy a team of ocean and fisheries scientists who work with our partners on local grounds to improve practices and foster change and reform.

The key is better and direct market access, which allows us to incentivise better practices and maximise benefits for smallholder producers. Over the past 20 years, we have established more than 20 fisheries and aquaculture projects in Asia and Latin America, working with 10,000 smallholder producers.

Can you share some success stories or impactful projects that Blueyou has been involved in?
Our flagship programme is Selva Shrimp, which combines the restoration of mangroves in degraded intertidal zones with the nature-based farming of shrimp and crab by smallholder communities in Vietnam and Indonesia. The programme works with more than 4,500 small-scale farmers and encompasses a surface of more than 20,000 hectares.

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The beauty of this unique food harvesting system is that mangroves provide food and shelter for shrimp and crabs to thrive—hence farmers are incentivised to maintain mangroves as a functional part of the aquatic food web. As there is no feed and fertiliser required, participating farmers have a robust and attractive income, and consumers can enjoy tasty seafood which has been raised in balance with nature and people.  

Another success story is our Fair Trade Pole & Line Tuna fishery programme in the Maldives, which is the largest Fair Trade seafood programme globally. Through the Fair Trade model, Blueyou supports traditional fishing communities and creates improved market access and recognition for tuna caught by low-impact, single-hook gear.

How does Blueyou ensure transparency and traceability in the seafood supply chain?
For every project, our technical team develops a specific traceability system which is then transitioned into a fully digital solution. Creating fully traceable supply chains is the fundamental basis for the establishment of responsible seafood supply chains and for Blueyou’s work with producers.

Being a global brand, how has Blueyou approached entering the F&B and hospitality industry in Asia, specifically Singapore?
Blueyou has been supplying certified sustainable seafood products to leading hotels in Asia for ten years. Usually, our entry point is with larger hotels and quality-oriented retailers interested in responsible sourcing and sustainable product offerings. With the launch of our new seafood retail range, our value proposition is becoming even more attractive to our customers.

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In Singapore specifically, we are aiming to identify trailblazers who are ready to walk the talk and embark on a journey of continuous improvement together with us. The transition towards planet and people-friendly seafood won’t happen overnight—hence our approach is to build solid, long-term relationships based on mutual trust and a shared commitment towards healthy oceans.

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