BlueNalu, a leading innovative food company developing a variety of seafood products directly from fish cells, has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) with two leading seafood providers in Asia — Thai Union, a global seafood producer, and Mitsubishi Corporation, a globally integrated business enterprise
Both agreements are designed to assess market development strategies for BlueNalu’s cell-cultured seafood specifically in Asia where there is high demand for quality seafood and the potential for diminishing supply to feed its population during the coming years.
The collaborations represent a mutual interest in the commercialisation of cell-cultured seafood in Asia and a commitment to sustainable seafood solutions to meet rising demand. Global seafood consumption is at an all-time high and continues to increase, particularly in Asia, outpacing the population growth. Current seafood production from wild-caught and farm-raised sources cannot keep pace with demand according to the United Nations, which projects a supply chain gap representing 28 million metric tonnes of new seafood production will be needed by 2030, and cell-cultured seafood is seen as a third solution that can help meet that demand.
The independent agreements with Thai Union, who also participated in BlueNalu’s latest round of financing, and with Mitsubishi Corporation include collaborations to conduct market research and develop consumer insights in various regions, assess regulatory requirements, and explore business and product opportunities that could accelerate the introduction of cell-cultured seafood products throughout Asia. BlueNalu’s business strategy is to partner with leading multinational companies on market research, regulatory affairs, product design and development, manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution, to efficiently and effectively bring BlueNalu’s branded cell-cultured seafood products to consumers worldwide in the coming years.
Previously, BlueNalu announced strategic investments from Pulmuone, a leading global food company rooted in the principles of nutrition and sustainability headquartered in South Korea and Sumitomo Corporation of Americas, the largest subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation — an integrated global trading company with diversified investments in businesses involved in manufacturing and marketing of consumer products headquartered in Japan.
Furthering the company’s commitment to the Asia market, and Japan, in particular, BlueNalu recently joined the Cellular Agriculture Study Group of the Center for Rulemaking Strategies (CRS) at Tama University in Tokyo, a consortium of professionals from academia, industry and government regulatory agencies investigating pathways to bring cell-cultured foods to market in Japan. BlueNalu’s CEO, Lou Cooperhouse, has presented twice to the CRS study group, and the company will continue to engage with similar groups in Japan and other markets of interest.
BlueNalu’s technology platform is designed to allow it to produce a wide array of seafood products from a variety of seafood species to meet consumer needs in each region it goes to market. With wild fisheries and fish farms increasingly vulnerable to various anthropogenic and environmental pressures, BlueNalu’s cell-cultured seafood products could offer a regenerative, continuous, consistent and healthy seafood solution that is traceable, secure, and safe.
