Aquafude are trying to change the way fish are raised and consumed in China. They’ve been going all over Western China changing the local fish farming practices, which includes measuring pollution levels, changing the feed provided to the fish, and much more. The result is a domestic product that they argue is fresher, healthier, and more delicious than anything else you can find in China.
I talked with Ari Jadwin and Matt Tatkow from Aquafude about importing Chilean fish feed, what the 2008 earthquake has to do with the fish farming, and what it takes to convince local fisheries to embrace a sustainable mindset.
Topics discussed:
1:00 What is an aquaculture company and what does Aquafude do?
2:00 Working with farms in Western China
3:00 What the 2008 earthquakes has to do with today’s fish farms
4:30 What kind of fish are salmon trout and why are the good for mountain communities?
6:00 Why aren’t farmers in Western China raising traditional livestock?
8:15 How did Ari and Aquafude get involved with fish farmers?
11:00 Aquafude’s business proposition to local fish farmers
13:50 What were the barriers to selling this proposition to fish farmers?
16:00 How Aquafude expanded from selling just fish feed to the actual fish themselves
19:00 Who is buying these fish now
20:30 Aquafude’s entry into farm management
23:10 Are the farmers converted to appreciate sustainability now?
23:50 Becoming more hands-on with the farmers
24:30 From selling directly to consumers to selling online + imported fish in China
29:05 Interlude
30:05 The regulatory situation for fish farms in China and for imports
31:10 Changing trends in China
31:40 Numbers on fish farming and consumption in China and the world
33:50 The current scope of Aquafude’s operation and the future
36:00 The potential issues of scaling up
37:05 The size range of fisheries that Aquafude deals with
38:40 How does Aquafude find new fisheries?
40:30 What was the existing network of fisheries in Western China and how did/do they interact
42:30 Information sharing, consulting companies, and how they’re keeping fish healthy
44:00 Density of fisheries in China compared to in the West
45:30 How are Aquafude’s standards informed and enforced
48:30 Mercury levels in the feed and the farmed fish
50:30 What is Aquafude’s commitment to sustainability and why does it matter
Songs featured in this podcast
* Pastel (et aliae remix), by Ulzzang Pistol
* 25 Mile Bossa, by Skeewiff x Edwin Starr
* Be Easy (instrumental), by Ghostface Killah
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