Retailing giant Walmart has announced a new North Star Program in conjunction with Ecuadorean shrimp farmer Omarsa, aquafeed firm Skretting, and NGO The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to help develop and sell more sustainable shrimp products. The company unveiled its plans in a case study presented 22 October at the AquaExpo conference taking place in Guayaquil, Ecuador, showcasing how retailers, shrimp producers, aquaculture feed suppliers, and NGOs can come together to drive more sustai
Retailing giant Walmart has announced a new North Star Program in conjunction with Ecuadorean shrimp farmer Omarsa, aquafeed firm Skretting, and NGO The Nature Conservancy (TNC) to help develop and sell more sustainable shrimp products.
The company unveiled its plans in a case study presented 22 October at the AquaExpo conference taking place in Guayaquil, Ecuador, showcasing how retailers, shrimp producers, aquaculture feed suppliers, and NGOs can come together to drive more sustainable shrimp production.
The program will drive a more thriving and sustainable shrimp industry, according to Walmart’s Frozen Seafood Merchandising Director Michael Berto. Program participants will look to test operational and economic feasibility for clean energy shrimp production, employing technology to increase efficiency, sourcing deforestation-free soy, preferring alternatives to marine ingredients and reducing reliance on wild-caught fish, Berto said.
“Walmart was seeking a product that had certified soy feed with a low carbon footprint, but this was going to increase the costs. Walmart said this is something they would be willing to take on. That was good too, because we had to make our own costs more transparent,” Omarsa CEO Sandro Coglitore said during the conference. “The project has all of the certifications that exist, even certifying that the soy used in the shrimp feed has been sustainably grown and does not come from deforested land. It will go towards strengthening our sustainability qualifications, backed by Walmart.”
The certified feed is sourced from Skretting, while the certified Omarsa shrimp will be sold to Walmart by Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.A.-based Beaver Street Fisheries.
According to TNC Global Aquaculture Project Coordinator Antonio Santa Marta, the NGO was drawn to the project because it had three elements that stood out: a supermarket that is willing to share the risk; a sustainable movement in Ecuador, with actors competing to see who is more sustainable; and economic and operational feasibility.
“We like to work with market leaders, and regarding shrimp, Ecuador checks that box,” Santa Marta said.
On the sidelines of the event, Santa Marta told SeafoodSource the
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