UMITRON PTE. LTD. recently launched ‘UMI to SACHI’, an initiative advocating for consumers to be more emotionally in touch with the way seafood is produced and to encourage them to be more involved in the future of our oceans. In doing so, Umitron hopes to leverage technology to help farms not only optimise their material and manpower resources but also to adopt more sustainable and environmentally conscious farming practices that protect the surrounding marine environment.
The initiative was kicked off in Japan in November via a crowdfunding campaign held in collaboration with ‘Chefs for the Blue’, an advocacy group comprising top chefs across Japan who are working together to raise consumer awareness about sustainable seafood in the country. With Mr Shinsuke Ishii, owner-chef of restaurant Sincere Blue at the helm, the group of more than 30 talented chefs come from popular restaurants around Tokyo, many of which have been awarded Michelin stars. Additionally, of the six establishments recently awarded the Michelin Green Star, three of them including Mr Ishii’s restaurant, were from ‘Chefs for the Blue’.
Using quintessentially Japanese fish such as red sea bream and grouper, the team will be pooling their culinary knowledge to create a number of home recipes for campaign backers. The recipes spanning French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese, Thai and modern American flavours aim to showcase the versatility of Japanese produce in international cuisine. Other rewards include exclusive online content and a special dining event for select individuals. Upon launch, the campaign was a resounding success, quickly hitting more than 200% of its target in the first 24-hours, and is expected to continue growing until it ends in January 2021.
The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has also come on board to partner with Umitron and local farmers, using their education arm to spread the message of choosing sustainably produced fish. Via ‘UMI to SACHI’, Umitron is also proud to be involved in the handling of the world’s first ASC-certified red sea bream.
Moving forwards, Umitron is committed to bringing this seafood action to the global community, connecting stakeholders across the entire aquaculture value chain with consumers who want options that protect the oceans of tomorrow. With Asia as a starting point, the team wants to work with like-minded organisations to accelerate this initiative and roll it out to other parts of the world. To date, two large retail companies have already agreed to introduce fish produced by farms under the ‘UMI to SACHI’ arm.
Umitron is currently looking for partners who are interested in food sustainability and taking action to push the aquaculture industry forward and towards more environmentally friendly seafood choices. If you belong to an organisation eager to join this wave of change with us, please contact us at umitosachi@umitron.com.
About UMITRON
UMITRON is a Singapore and Japan-based deep tech company that aims to solve worldwide food and environmental problems by empowering aquaculture with technology. We build user-friendly data platforms for aquaculture by using IoT, satellite remote sensing, and AI technology. Our products help farmers improve farm efficiency, manage environmental risks, and increase business revenue. We make it easy for both small and large farmers to understand what is happening at their farm so that they can focus on sustainably producing high-quality fish, shellfish, and seaweed. Ultimately, we aim to “install Sustainable Aquaculture on Earth”.
