Leading companies including Cargill, Mars, Walmart, Costco, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Finance Earth have collaboratively introduced a pioneering concept aimed at financing the global transition to more sustainable fisheries. The objective is to catalyse over $100 million in investments for fisheries improvement by the year 2030.
This innovative financing model, named the Fisheries Improvement Fund (FIF), focuses on reversing the decline in fisheries while scaling up global initiatives toward nature-positive outcomes. The envisioned outcomes include healthier marine ecosystems, thriving fishing communities, and the promotion of an environmentally sustainable blue economy.
Finance Earth, known for its impact investment advisory and fund management, will spearhead the establishment and management of the FIF. James Mansfield, co-founder and managing director at Finance Earth, emphasizes the potential of this approach to attract diverse investors from both the public and private sectors, contributing to the protection of oceans and the advancement of a sustainable blue economy.
WWF and Finance Earth collaborated with major industry players to conceptualize and design the FIF. The model is seen as impactful, scalable across fisheries, and endorsed by companies committed to transitioning their supply chain fisheries to more sustainable resources.
The innovative financing model, driven by Finance Earth’s expertise, aims to blend different sources of capital, increasing the availability of funding for fisheries recovery. Johan Bergenas, SVP of Oceans at WWF US, highlights the importance of this blue finance mechanism in ensuring sustainable financing for critical projects that scale fishery reform over the next decade.
Companies participating in the initiative will commit to a volume-based fee, enabling the FIF to cover upfront costs for Fishery Improvement Projects (FIPs) and create a long-term revenue stream. This groundbreaking approach changes how long-term sustainability is funded, recognizing it as a cost of doing business and embedding it into product costs.
Cargill and Skretting, prominent feed companies, contributed their expertise to the development of the concept and will participate in a pilot project. Major seafood buyers and philanthropic foundations, including Mars, Costco, Sodexo, and Walmart, are also supporting the launch of the fund.
The pilot project, details of which will be unveiled soon, has secured a capital commitment to cover upfront transition costs through a Program Related Investment instrument. Beyond the pilot, the FIF aims to attract capital from a wider range of sources, reducing transaction costs and enabling rapid and scalable deployment of funds for targeted Fishery Improvement Projects.
Finance Earth is actively seeking proposals for fisheries worldwide interested in securing funding through the FIF. The fund is open to opportunities presented by various stakeholders, including NGOs, local fishing groups, industry actors, buyers, retailers, and local or national governments. It supports both industrial and small-scale fisheries, whether currently in a FIP or not yet engaged in one.
