Wide Net Project

What Wide Net Project does

Wide Net Project (WNP) is a Maryland-incorporated non-profit organization that operates a hybrid conservation-and-hunger-relief business model built around invasive blue catfish harvested from the Chesapeake Bay. The organization monetizes the overpopulation of an invasive species — blue catfish now represent up to 75% of total fish biomass in portions of the James and Rappahannock rivers — by channeling wild-caught product through a premier wholesale distributor, J.J. McDonnell and Co., which donates proceeds back to WNP and handles fresh, frozen (IQF), and retail-packaged distribution across the continental United States. A one-for-one donation model underpins the value proposition: for every pound sold through WNP's partnerships, one portion is donated to hunger-relief organizations serving food-insecure communities.

The operating model is asset-light and channel-partner-led rather than technology-led. WNP drives demand through community engagement — cooking demonstrations at grocers, farmers markets, and large events; chef and procurement-manager outreach; and earned media coverage in outlets including the Washington Post, Civil Eats, Food Tank, and NOAA Fisheries — while outsourcing processing, cold-chain logistics, and delivery to J.J. McDonnell. Retail presence is concentrated with MOM's Organic Market across the mid-Atlantic, and individual households can also place direct orders with a 25-pound minimum via the WNP website. Revenue is composed of donated fish-sale proceeds, individual donations (processed via PayPal, tiers ranging from $25 to $5,000), and foundation and government funding; the federal 501(c)(3) determination was in process at the time of the source content, with a longer-established 501(c)(3) acting as fiscal sponsor for larger gifts.

Governance is provided by a four-person Board of Directors (Wendy Stuart, Sarah Dachos, Kathy O'Neill, Juli Staiano) with backgrounds spanning local food systems, maritime security and fisheries, public relations, and non-profit development. Strategic positioning is reinforced by contracted work with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources — under which WNP is managing a Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch sustainability assessment of the Chesapeake Bay blue catfish fishery — and an advisory role with the National Aquarium's Seafood Smart initiative. The Wide Net Project® name is a federally registered trademark. Headcount is described only as 'a small but mighty team,' and no funding rounds, revenue figures, or technology platform disclosures are present in the available data.

Name

Wide Net Project

Legal name

Wide Net Project

Website

https://widenetproject.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wide Net Project is a Maryland non-profit that connects Chesapeake Bay invasive blue catfish management with hunger relief through a one-for-one donation model. It sells wild-caught fish via wholesale distributor J.J. McDonnell, retail partner MOM's Organic Market, and direct household orders, channeling proceeds and donations into conservation and food access.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainable Seafood Conservation & Hunger Relief

NAICS

Other Marine Fishing (114119)

SIC

Fishing, Hunting And Trapping (900)

akta.pro primary industry

Seafood Markets & Fishmongers (CRAHAHAC)

Keywords

• Sustainable seafood distribution
• Invasive species management
• Hunger relief program
• Chesapeake bay conservation
• Blue catfish fishery

Headquarters

HQ city

Silver Spring

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Fish Sales Proceeds: WNP's distributor partner J.J. McDonnell donates proceeds from blue catfish purchases to fund WNP's mission. Fish is sold fresh, frozen (IQF), and retail-packaged through wholesale channels.
2. Donations: The organization accepts donations via PayPal and through a fiscal sponsor arrangement. Donations fund conservation education, scientific work, and hunger-relief engagement. WNP is a Maryland non-profit corporation with 501c3 status in process.
3. Foundation and Government Funding: WNP receives foundation support and government funding to advance its mission of conservation, hunger relief, and economic development in the Chesapeake Bay region.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Wide Net Project sells Chesapeake Bay invasive blue catfish through wholesale distribution partnerships with J.J. McDonnell, available fresh, frozen (IQF), and retail-packaged. Under its one-for-one model, for every pound of fish sold, one portion is donated to hunger-relief organizations. WNP also conducts conservation education, scientific assessment coordination, and market development to grow demand for the sustainable local seafood.

Product overview

Wide Net Project is a nonprofit organization that sells Chesapeake Bay wild blue catfish through wholesale distribution partnerships. The core product is the invasive blue catfish itself, available fresh, frozen (IQF), or retail-packaged. WNP operates a one-for-one donation model: for every pound of fish sold through partner distributors like J.J. McDonnell and Co., one portion is donated to hunger-relief organizations. The organization also conducts conservation education and market development to grow demand for the sustainable seafood. Fish is available wholesale to restaurants, institutions, and food service operators, and at retail through MOM's Organic Market stores throughout the mid-Atlantic region.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wild Blue Catfish (Chesapeake Bay) Invasive blue catfish harvested from the Chesapeake Bay and sold fresh, frozen (IQF), or individually packaged for retail. Distributed through wholesale partner J.J. McDonnell to restaurants, hospitals, caterers, universities, and food service operators, and at retail through MOM's Organic Market. For every pound sold through WNP's distribution partnerships, one portion is donated to hunger-relief organizations.
• Hunger Relief Donation Program WNP's one-for-one donation model in which, for every pound of blue catfish sold through partner distributors, one portion is donated to local hunger-relief organizations including Miriam's Kitchen, Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food and Agriculture, and N Street Village, which serve nutritious meals to food-insecure communities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Chesapeake Bay commercial fishery more than doubled since WNP launched
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• J.J. McDonnell and Co.coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPremier fish processor and distributor in the mid-Atlantic. Handles all wholesale distribution of WNP blue catfish, managing fish from Bay to table. Dedication to traceability, product quality, and community focus. Donates proceeds from blue catfish purchases to WNP.
• MOM's Organic MarketcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMid-Atlantic premier chain of family-owned organic grocery stores. Purpose is to protect and restore the environment. Their support has enabled donations of tens of thousands of portions of blue catfish. Financial support and commitment to environment.
• Arnold and PorterminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLegal team of Brian Israel and Emma Lewis provided invaluable assistance shepherding WNP through the 501c3 application process.
• Georgetown University Social Enterprise and Non-profit Law ClinicminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerPriya Baskaran of the clinic generously donated time to oversee WNP's trademark application.
• Black Eye ProductionsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProduced the WNP video featured on the website landing page.
• DLA PiperminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerJay Finkelstein and Cara Hupprich provided essential legal expertise as WNP was launching.
• Maryland Department of Natural ResourcescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContracted WNP to manage an assessment of the sustainability of Chesapeake Bay's blue catfish fishery. This scientific assessment is being conducted by Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program.
• Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch ProgramcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerConducts sustainability assessment of Chesapeake Bay blue catfish fishery under contract with Maryland DNR. Seafood Watch aims to help people make seafood choices that best support the environment.
• National Aquarium's Seafood Smart InitiativecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWNP's leadership is part of the advisory team for development of this initiative, which will feature robust standards for guiding responsibly-sourced seafood purchases.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Capital Area Food Bank: The largest hunger-relief organization in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area, distributing food to partner feeding programs. Comparable as a primary hunger-relief downstream partner for WNP's donation model and a regional peer in the same geography.
• City Harvest: New York City's largest food rescue organization, feeding millions of New Yorkers. Comparable to WNP as a downstream hunger-relief partner receiving donated protein and as a regional food-rescue operator in a different geography.

Broad incumbents

• Fortune Fish & Gourmet: A large specialty seafood and gourmet foods distributor in the U.S. mid-market with a stated focus on sustainable sourcing. Comparable to WNP's wholesale distribution backbone (J.J. McDonnell plays a similar role) and to the broader specialty seafood category where WNP competes for chef and institutional buyers.
• Feeding America: The largest hunger-relief organization in the United States, operating a national network of food banks. Comparable to WNP's hunger-relief outcomes arm and donation-to-meal model, but at vastly greater scale and with a wholesale/processing operating model rather than a wild-capture fishery source.
• The Nature Conservancy: One of the world's largest conservation NGOs, working across marine, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems. Comparable to WNP on the conservation-funding and ecosystem-restoration axes, but with a global portfolio rather than a single-watershed focus.

Direct peers

• Local Catch Network: A national network of community-supported fisheries (CSFs) and fisher cooperatives across the U.S. and Canada. Comparable to WNP's model of connecting small-scale fisheries directly to consumers and communities, though operating across many species rather than one invasive population.
• Chesapeake Bay Foundation: The largest independent conservation organization dedicated solely to restoring the Chesapeake Bay. Directly comparable to WNP's regional conservation mission and Bay-restoration positioning, with substantially larger scale and broader programmatic scope.
• Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch: The leading consumer-facing sustainable seafood ratings program in the U.S. Directly comparable to WNP through an active strategic partnership (conducting the blue catfish sustainability assessment for Maryland DNR) and shared mission of reshaping seafood demand toward sustainable supply.
• Real Good Fish: A community-supported fishery (CSF) and seafood distributor based in California focused on traceable, locally sourced, sustainable seafood. Comparable to WNP through a similar mission-driven seafood-distribution model, channel-led GTM, and education-led consumer activation, though operating with farmed/wild mixed supply rather than a single invasive species.
• EcoFish: A sustainable seafood sourcing and consulting company focused on traceable, responsibly harvested seafood for retail and foodservice. Comparable to WNP on the sustainable-seafood mission axis and on the practice of channeling responsibly sourced seafood into mainstream retail and foodservice channels.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wide-net-project

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Wide Net Project