LocalCoho, a land-based coho salmon farm in the U.S. state of New York, has launched a Regulation D offering on the Harvest Returns platform – a financial technology marketplace for agricultural producers and investors – to expand its recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) operation.
According to Harvest Returns, the move builds on more than USD 6.2 million (EUR 5.2 million) in financing that LocalCoho has already raised from its board of directors and outside investors. The company said this latest fundraising could be a tipping point that leads to a significant scaling of its operations.
"By coming into the company now, Harvest Returns investors are aligning their terms with our committed and experienced group of investors at an early enough stage to experience the significant growth the company expects," LocalCoho CEO Phil Gibson said. "Ultimately, we will operate a number of facilities near major U.S. markets to bring local consumers fresh, never frozen, sustainable fish raised in the U.S."
Working in a 43,000-square-foot RAS facility in Auburn, New York, the company hatches coho from certified-organic eggs and raises them to maturity. The sushi-grade fish are bound for a premium market, setting the product apart from more common, recognizable species, the company said.
LocalCoho has not released any details about how it hopes to expand, but Gibson previously told SeafoodSource that expansion across the country in as many as 12 regional locations is a possibility. The Auburn facility will serve as proof of concept for new facilities.
"We were thrilled to be one of the first investors in LocalCoho, especially as we see the growing market interest for RAS," Jamie Stein of Devonian Capital, a firm specializing in investing in land-based aquaculture businesses, said. "In this year alone, RAS valuations multiplied, signaling the market's appreciation for this environmentally friendly way to grow fish."
Harvest Returns has raised over USD 11 million (EUR 9.3 million) for farms and agribusinesses across the world, according to the company.
"We are pleased to offer this opportunity to invest in the rapidly growing indoor aquaculture space," Harvest Returns CEO Chris Rawley said. "Institutional investors have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into RAS operations in the past year, and now individual investors have a chance to participate in an early-stage indoor aquaculture company with a highly experienced team."
