FishWise
FishWise is a Santa Cruz, California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2003 that combines foundation grants and consulting fees to deliver seafood sustainability tooling (RISE, SALT, Vessel Risk Dashboard) and advisory services to enterprise retailers, suppliers, governments, and NGOs across roughly 90 countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2003
- HeadquartersSanta Cruz, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What FishWise does
FishWise is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2003 and headquartered in Santa Cruz, California, that combines philanthropic funding with fee-based consulting to advance seafood supply chain sustainability. Its portfolio includes three core platforms — RISE (Roadmap for Improving Seafood Ethics) for human rights due diligence, SALT (Seafood Alliance for Legality and Traceability) for electronic catch documentation and traceability, and the Vessel Risk Dashboard for IUU fishing risk assessment — plus the Indian Shrimp Aquascape directory of aquaculture initiatives in Andhra Pradesh. A four-pillar advisory practice (Sustainable Seafood Strategy, Program Implementation, Education and Training, Advocacy and Governance Support) wraps the digital tools and is delivered to enterprise seafood buyers, suppliers, government agencies, and NGOs across roughly 90 countries. Named enterprise clients include Target, Albertsons, Hy-Vee, Iberostar, New Seasons Market, Lazy Acres, New Leaf, Oddisea SuperFrozen, and Culinary Collaborations; business partners collectively reach approximately 4,500 U.S. grocery stores.
FishWise firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- FishWise
- Legal name
- FishWise
- Website
- https://fishwise.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2003
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- FishWise is a Santa Cruz, California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 2003 that combines foundation grants and consulting fees to deliver seafood sustainability tooling (RISE, SALT, Vessel Risk Dashboard) and advisory services to enterprise retailers, suppliers, governments, and NGOs across roughly 90 countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where FishWise is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Santa Cruz
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
FishWise business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Foundation Grants and Donations: FishWise is a nonprofit organization that relies on grants and donations from philanthropic foundations. Major funders include Walton Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Walmart Foundation, and government agencies like USAID.
- Professional Services (Consulting): FishWise provides fee-for-service consulting to seafood companies for sustainability strategy, program implementation, training, and due diligence services.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | RISE Platform - Free Access |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
FishWise product offering
Product offeringCore offering
FishWise provides sustainability advisory services and digital data tools to seafood companies, retailers, suppliers, governments, and NGOs. Its core offerings include the Vessel Risk Dashboard for supply chain due diligence, the RISE online platform for human rights due diligence, the SALT traceability community and resources, and consulting engagements covering sustainable seafood strategy, program implementation, training, and advocacy support.
Product overview
FishWise is a nonprofit sustainability consultancy (not a traditional software product company) that provides services and platforms to transform global seafood supply chains. The organization operates a portfolio of interconnected programs: the Vessel Risk Dashboard (data aggregation tool for due diligence), SALT (traceability community and resources), RISE (human rights due diligence platform), and Indian Shrimp Aquascape (directory of aquaculture initiatives in India). These are complemented by advisory service offerings including Sustainable Seafood Strategy, Program Implementation, Education and Training, and Advocacy and Governance Support. The organization has been serving since 2003, working across 90 countries with partnerships reaching 4,500 U.S. grocery stores.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Vessel Risk Dashboard Customizable digital tool that aggregates multiple data sources into actionable supply chain due diligence insights, helping seafood companies assess and mitigate the risk of illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing in their supply chains.
- SALT (Seafood Alliance for Legality and Traceability) Global community platform providing electronic catch documentation and traceability resources, tools, and implementation guidance for governments, industry, and NGOs to advance seafood traceability.
- RISE (Roadmap for Improving Seafood Ethics) Free online platform that guides companies implementing human rights due diligence, providing resources covering responsible recruitment, decent work at sea, and worker engagement, along with eLearning modules and self-assessment tools.
- Indian Shrimp Aquascape Centralized digital repository of organizations and initiatives working to advance sustainability and social responsibility of shrimp farming communities in India, featuring interactive maps and filters for Andhra Pradesh.
- Sustainable Seafood Strategy Advisory service helping seafood companies review and develop sustainability programs that address sustainability risks, including supply chain due diligence frameworks, traceability, verification, and transparency integration.
- Program Implementation Operational support services including data collection, product assessments, verification, supply chain analysis, risk identification and mitigation, vendor support, and communications assistance.
- Education and Training Resources and training tools including seafood sustainability basics, RISE online learning resources, coaching packages, and human rights due diligence training for corporate teams.
- Advocacy and Governance Support Convening and advocacy services bringing consistent and effective standards to the seafood sector, including governance advice, advocacy support, and coordination of pre-competitive collaborations.
Quantifiable outcome
- FishWise business partners' operations reach 4,500 U.S. grocery stores
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use FishWise
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
FishWise technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
FishWise partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.
- Monterey Bay AquariumcoreStrategic partner in Indian shrimp aquaculture work, collaborating with FishWise and Acharya Nagarjuna University on community-led solutions for smallholder shrimp farmers in Andhra Pradesh.
- Acharya Nagarjuna UniversitycoreAcademic partner collaborating on the Pond to PBI project for community-led solutions in smallholder shrimp production in Andhra Pradesh.
- SAFET (Safe Aquaculture for Everyone)supportingNGO partner collaborating on seafood safety and sustainability initiatives.
- SEA-AlliancesupportingIndustry alliance partner working on seafood sustainability and accountability.
- SeaPactsupportingMulti-stakeholder initiative partner focused on sustainable seafood.
- NGO Tuna ForumsupportingFishWise participates in the NGO Tuna Forum, collaborating on tuna sustainability issues.
- CASS (Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions)supportingFishWise is a member of CASS, a consortium of conservation organizations working on sustainable seafood solutions.
- Seafood Task ForcesupportingFishWise participates in the Seafood Task Force, an industry initiative addressing sustainability and social responsibility.
- EssmartsupportingLocal implementation partner for the Pond to PBI community-led solutions project in Andhra Pradesh, India.
- Agricultural and Social Development Society (ASDS)supportingCivil society organization partner working on the Pond to PBI project to support small-scale shrimp farmers and communities.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights7 records
FishWise competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI): Multi-stakeholder benchmarking organization for seafood certification schemes. Kelley Bell sits on GSSI's Board from FishWise, evidencing direct overlap in seafood due-diligence methodology and global seafood-funder ecosystem.
- Sustainable Fisheries Partnership: Nonprofit that works directly with retailers, suppliers, and producers on seafood sustainability, similar to FishWise's Buyer Engagement and FIP support work. Highly overlapping customer base and methodology make it the closest direct peer.
- Oceana: Large international NGO campaigning on illegal fishing, traceability, and seafood supply-chain transparency. Operates at the same intersection of industry, government, and civil society with significant overlap with FishWise's IUU and policy work.
- Seafood Watch (Monterey Bay Aquarium): FishWise's named partner on the India shrimp aquaculture project. Seafood Watch produces the most widely used seafood sustainability ratings in the US and works with the same retailers and foodservice operators FishWise serves.
- Future of Fish: Fellow nonprofit working on seafood supply-chain innovation, traceability, and small-scale fishery enterprise. Comparable mission, customer base, and use of digital tools to drive fisheries sustainability.
- Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS): Industry-led coalition of major seafood companies addressing IUU fishing and human rights. Engages with many of the same enterprise retailers and seafood companies that are FishWise customers.
Broad incumbents
- World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Global conservation NGO with a large seafood and fisheries program (e.g., WWF Seafood Savvy, fishery improvement projects). Far larger and broader than FishWise, but operates in the same supply-chain sustainability space with significant overlap in corporate engagement.
- The Nature Conservancy: Global conservation organization with significant seafood and aquaculture programs, including partnerships with retailers. Operates at much larger scale and broader conservation mandate than FishWise.
Others
- Proforest: Supply-chain sustainability consultancy working on responsible production and procurement across commodities including seafood-adjacent fisheries. Comparable consulting business model rather than direct mission competitor.
Emerging players
- Rare: Behavior-change nonprofit with a fisheries and coastal livelihoods program. Smaller and more focused on community-level fisheries than FishWise, but comparable in methodology of combining field work with tools and training.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
FishWise social profiles
Digital presenceFishWise financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
FishWise leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
FishWise funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
FishWise M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about FishWise
What does FishWise do?
FishWise provides sustainability advisory services and digital data tools to seafood companies, retailers, suppliers, governments, and NGOs. Its core offerings include the Vessel Risk Dashboard for supply chain due diligence, the RISE online platform for human rights due diligence, the SALT traceability community and resources, and consulting engagements covering sustainable seafood strategy, program implementation, training, and advocacy support.
Is FishWise a public or private company?
FishWise is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was FishWise founded?
FishWise was founded in 2003. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is FishWise based?
FishWise is headquartered in Santa Cruz, United States, in the North America region.
How does FishWise make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Foundation Grants and Donations are the primary driver. The others are professional Services (Consulting).
Who are FishWise's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI), Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, Oceana, Seafood Watch (Monterey Bay Aquarium), Future of Fish and Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS). Broad incumbents are World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and The Nature Conservancy. Proforest is listed as an others. Rare is listed as an emerging player.
Does FishWise have an API?
No public API is recorded for FishWise.