The Theory of Change from the New Seafood Legacy – For a more robust sustainable seafood movement-

Hello everyone. This is Wakao Hanaoka, the CEO of Seafood Legacy.

Social issues regarding the marine environment have become increasingly complex and diverse in recent years, and the importance of strengthening collaboration among industry, government, and the private sector is growing by the day. There have also been major developments in Japan, including the revision of the Fisheries Act and the enactment of the Act on the Proper Distribution of Marine Products, which have made it necessary to resolve issues that suit relevant practical requirements.

We have therefore decided to make the Fisheries Science Department independent and incorporate it.The Fishery & Science Department that provided consulting to fishery or aquaculture producers will become independent as UMITO Partners Inc..

Shunji Murakami, our Vice President/COO, will assume the position of CEO & Founder of the new company, which will be called UMITO Partners Inc.. Mr. Murakami will step down from his current position as Vice President/COO.
For more details, please read:  The Fishery & Science Department Starburst & Establishment of New Company

2030 is the target year for achieving SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals). Seafood Legacy envisions a world in which everyone who lives with the oceans is smiling and hopes for the future through the sustainable growth of Japan’s fisheries industry:

1. Make over 75% of seafood distributed in Japan environmentally sustainable and socially responsible
2. Make over 75% of seafood produced in Japan environmentally sustainable and socially responsible
3. Replenish fish stocks in Japan where owns rich marine environment within its Exclusive Economic Zone and provide the fish as protein-rich diet to a growing population

Seafood Legacy believes in the importance of creating an environment where international seafood companies headquartered in Japan can work together in the pursuit of marine sustainability and social responsibility. To this end, we provide support to seafood companies and major retailers and restaurant chains to assist them in sourcing sustainable seafood and institutional investors and banks to help them with ESG financing for the oceans, an area of growing interest. In addition, we will continue to design and operate a non-competitive collaboration platform to connect these sectors.

It is also essential to revitalize the government, as it serves as a link between industry and the sustainable seafood movement. Some members of Seafood Legacy have served as expert members of several government committees and have been involved in the revision of the Fisheries Act and the passing of the Act on Ensuring the Proper Domestic Distribution and Importation of Specified Aquatic Animals and Plants, contributing to the deliberations for and coordination of fishery policies for the pursuit of sustainability.

Also, in collaboration with domestic and international NGOs, think tanks, and foundations, we will continue to gather information from around the world to make recommendations to accelerate future-oriented fisheries policies moving forward. Seafood Legacy also focuses on bringing industry and government initiatives together, visualizing the development of the resultant movement, and creating a mechanism that many stakeholders can actively participate in.

Every autumn, we hold the Tokyo Sustainable Seafood Summit (TSSS), which we have made into the largest-scale sustainable seafood event in Asia, and operate the Seafood Legacy Times, a web media intended to introduce readers to industry innovators working to create a future of sustainable seafood.

We believe that the pursuit of environmental sustainability and social responsibility in the fisheries industry is something that Japan, more than any other country, can achieve, with our close relationship with the ocean, and that we will be able to celebrate this achievement together.

As a social enterprise, we will continue to establish seafood sustainability by supporting our partner organizations that devote themselves to be responsible to future generations and by co-creating solutions that fit Japanese culture with learning from abroad.

We hope you will work together with the newly established UMITO Partners Inc. and the new Seafood Legacy moving forward.