Aqua-Spark's Strategies to Invest China, Good News to Innovative SMEs

漁歌子

Aqua-Spark's Strategies to Invest China, Good News to Innovative SMEs
A Fishery Advance Magazine’s Interview Report (preview)
Edited by Luyi Hu
Aug 17th, 2016

Introduction of Aqua-Spark

Headquartered in Utrecht, Netherlands, Aqua-Spark is an investment fund that focuses on sustainable aquaculture businesses in a global perspective. Aqua-Spark has invested in multiple projects including Norwegian fish farm Sogn Aqua, US biotech company Calysta, and Indonesian based eFishery, providing a technology for monitoring fish feed. The goal of Aqua-Spark is to show that sustainable, healthy and affordable aquaculture is possible with financial returns that are comparable to traditional industry. Aqua-Spark invests across the value chain, from feed ingredients to farming, to technology, all the way to the market. Based on knowledge from Aqua-Spark, each initial investment ranges from 歐元250,000 to 歐元5 million to take minority shares between 20% to 49%.

Aquapod in Gulf of California, it is a massive underwater cage where shrimp to be raised sustainably (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

Aqua-Spark’s view of China

Mike Velings, the founder of Aqua-Spark, tells Fishery Advance Magazine (FAM) that he is impressive with China’s aquaculture since China contributes half of the world’s aquaculture production. “With all the knowledge and experience that is available in your country we see vast growth potential towards the future, implementing new technologies and practices as they become available across the globe. Not just to supply China’s internal vast demand, but also the rest of the globe.” He explained.

Currently, Aqua-Spark has not made an investment in China. Mike says, “We are generally interested in companies that have some proven track record, that are ready to scale up. Companies that have a new, proven, technology, an alternative sustainable feed ingredient, farms that have a demonstrated intention to produce sustainably and healthy. Companies and entrepreneurs that we can help develop further, and that would like to become part of our global network. Even if the end-product is for the local market. ”

One of the world’s largest indoor tilapia farms at Blue Ridge Aquaculture in Martinsville, Virginia (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

The management of funding

The funding chooses SMEs that meet three principles: Economic sustainability, Environmental sustainability and Social sustainability.

Aqua-Spark aims to assist long term partners, aiming for equitable dividends on their shareholding. Aqua-Spark asks for protections in the agreements and requires a board seat. “We are fairly active investors, helping company management where needed. We do not want to intervene in company management, we want to be partners.” Mike says.

Nature’s own water filters, giant Japanese scallops thrive on fish waste at an experimental

farm off Canada’s Vancouver Island (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

The back-up aside from funding

Next to the funding, Aqua-Spark brings a large global network of experts, knowledge and other valuable things to the company. And most importantly, Aqua-Spark’s ecosystem approach has a huge incentive for companies to stay good partners.

Sugar kelp being grown at an experimental farm off Canada’s Vancouver Island. The kelp turns nitrates from fish waste into oxygen. (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

“Team, business model, species, environmental sustainability, technology, valuation… Everything has to be right. We try to develop a relationship with potential companies early on, so we can get to know each other, before making an investment. So everyone involved knows what they are getting themselves into, without surprises.” Mike added.

Harvesting catfish at America's Catch catfish farm in Ita Benna. Mississippi (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

Green technologies generate more value than traditional business in the future

A lot of aquaculture businesses take a long time and considerable investment to come to fruition, meanwhile they pollute the environment. “We think this is mostly based on a lack of knowledge, or a lack of access to the right information. Aqua-Spark exists to prove this to be wrong.” Mike States, “It is not good for business to create a lot of pollution. It might mean the end of the business in the future.”

Aerial images of mariculture fish cages in Laguna Lake, south of Manila in The Philippines. This lake is unregulated in regards to mariculture. Too many of these cages (many illegally placed here) are creating a toxic situation. (Photo in credit of Mr. Brian Skerry)

In the next decade, Aqua-Spark aims to invest in 60-80 aquaculture companies across the globe, creating an ecosystem where the invested companies benefit from synergies between them. For example by having access to high quality feed ingredients at favorable prices.

Besides, the incoming Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA)’s annual conference (GOAL) in this September, Mr. Mike Velings is invited to Guangzhou to participate in a dialogue with an audience that comes from different fields of aquaculture. We are anticipating his presentation as well as further collaboration between Aqua-Spark and Chinese enterprises.


To learn more about Aqua-Spark and the policies on aquaculture project funding application, please refer to the linkage below:
http://www.aqua-spark.nl

For the TED video that’s provided by Aqua-Spark, please refer to the below internet linkage:
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTQ4OTIzMjUyMA==.html?from=s7.8-1.2

一片云

樓主啊，這是全英文的啊，就連標(biāo)題都是英文的

vanadis

表示看不懂，但是看了很震撼

漁歌子

哈哈哈...各位看官，看不懂是嗎？
我也是一頭霧水...
來(lái)個(gè)中文版本：創(chuàng)新型水產(chǎn)企業(yè)的福音，國(guó)際投資基金瞄準(zhǔn)中國(guó)潛力項(xiàng)目