Oikocredit worked with the international NGO Future of Fish to assess a potential social enterprise partner in Guatemala, Coastal Catch, regarding its fishing practices and controls. The outcome was positive, and Oikocredit has made a five-year loan to Coastal Catch.
This article was originally published on Oikocredit’s website.
Along Guatemala’s Pacific coast stretches a 254 km long expanse of dunes and sandy beaches, bordered by mangrove-lined lagoons. These ecosystems play a crucial role in providing vital environmental services such as serving as breeding grounds for marine species, protecting the coast from erosion and extreme weather events, capturing carbon, and conserving biodiversity.
Despite Guatemala’s vast territorial waters and Exclusive Economic Zone spanning 120,230 km2, the country’s artisanal fishing industry faces significant challenges. Traditionally relying on small-scale, age-old fishing practices to supply fish for local consumption and trade, artisanal fishers now confront threats like overfishing, climate change, pollution, and competition from industrial fishing fleets, jeopardizing their livelihoods and communities.
Compounded by inadequate infrastructure, limited market access, and insufficient government assistance, the sector struggles to thrive sustainably. Currently lacking key management measures such as seasonal fishing bans, minimum catch size regulations (except for sailfish), or protected recovery zones for target species, the industry risks further depletion of fish stocks. Studies indicate declining fish populations, high catches of juvenile fish, and the urgent need for reforms in size regulations and improved resource management.
Addressing the challenges
Fortunately, mission-driven enterprises like Coastal Catch (previously called Tunart), sustainability specialists like Future of Fish and international impact investors like Oikocredit are working to address the challenges. Our shared goal is a sustainable artisanal seafood sector that can support socioeconomic development while responsibly managing marine resources and protecting the ecosystem.
Located in Guatemala´s south pacific coastal department of Escuintla, Coastal Catch (previously doing business as TUNART) is a social enterprise supporting a network of 500+ artisan fishermen in the coastal communities of Central America to supply Yellowfin Tuna, Mahi Mahi, and Snapper to local and international markets. Coastal Catch´s mission is to work directly with independent artisanal fleets and create a more sustainable and fair industry that benefits the coastal communities that are in most need.
Before Coastal Catch began operations in 2019, these communities were mainly relying on endangered shark species as their main source of income. With Coastal Catch they are now earning four times more income focusing on alternate fisheries such as tuna, Mahi and snapper while responsibly managing these stocks. With strong ESG policies, Coastal Catch is passionate about preserving this rich marine environment through responsible and sustainable fishing practices that are designed to reduce by-catch levels and target fishing effort to catch only fish that have reached maturity in their natural growth cycle.
Social impact investor and worldwide cooperative Oikocredit has nearly five decades of experience funding organizations active in financial inclusion, agriculture and renewable energy. Oikocredit’s loans, equity investments and capacity building aim to enable people on low incomes in Africa, Asia and Latin America to improve their living standards sustainably. While relatively new to the artisanal fishery sector, Oikocredit recognises the potential socioeconomic and environmental benefits of investing in enterprises like Coastal Catch. Oikocredit’s five-year term loan will provide Coastal Catch with the working capital and capex investment it needs to further enhance its monitoring and evaluation system, guarantee the sustainability of its operations in Guatemala, and extend its supply chain to neighbouring countries such as El Salvador and Honduras.
Future of Fish is an international NGO whose mission is to empower thriving, resilient ocean communities by driving innovation and investment to small-scale fisheries. Future of Fish was honored to contribute to the environmental due diligence for Oikocredit´s investment in Coastal Catch and is eager to team up with other impact investment funds looking into entering the artisan fishery sector in Latin America.
Q&A with Daniel Amézquita, Investment Officer, Oikocredit
Why did you choose to partner with Future of Fish?
Oikocredit has known Future of Fish for many years, most recently engaging to discuss ways to catalyse opportunities to invest in fisheries in partnership with other investors in the Peruvian artisanal fishing sector. We have been impressed with Future of Fish’s business and investment acumen and their ability to engage with stakeholders to design solutions that could truly benefit fishers and cooperatives.
Tell us about the project and its importance to your work.
For Oikocredit, investing in Coastal Catch is not the first project in the blue economy. However, investing in wild-capture fisheries carries significant risks regarding both repayment and also reputation. With Coastal Catch we believe we have a good project to finance with moderate risk. It is a first step to looking for more of this type of project. Support from Future of Fish was important to validate and create clear recommendations about areas that Coastal Catch can focus on to improve their sourcing and support to fishers and responsible fishing.
What elements of this partnership and project excite you?
The potential social impact for coastal communities is as important to us as sustainable fishing practices. These are very vulnerable communities, and if we can improve their incomes while generating minimal environmental impact it will be an important achievement for everyone involved.
What does the future hold?
It is important to do more in the artisanal seafood sector, seeking a balance across the areas of society/community, environment/ecosystem and financial risks. Currently, there are only a few companies that achieve all three elements. However, as more blue economy initiatives emerge, we will continue evaluating them with a view towards achieving our mission of empowerment.
Q&A with Peter Battisti, Executive Director, Future of Fish
What is the value of partnering with Oikocredit?
With our focus on supporting small-scale producers to improve their businesses to both be more efficient and profitable as well as practice more responsible production, there is a basic need for unlocking investment to support this transition. That means finding and building partnerships with aligned capital sources that can understand the risks associated with small-scale production who are also willing to put the time and energy into what is necessary to tackle the fishing sector — one that is vastly underserved by private capital. Oikocredit has a history of innovation and collaboration that is a natural partnership to explore opportunities in the seafood sector.
How does this project contribute to your mission?
Working in partnership with Oikocredit, we can recognize and support businesses innovating to bring better practices that can translate up to the producer level. With this investment in Coastal Catch, we are supporting a company with the principles and values that we aspire for all our partners — to advance better business practices that support more responsible production. If we can demonstrate that these practices create win-win for everyone — producers, seafood businesses, consumers, the environment — it develops the business case for sustainable production.
Q&A with Jose Miguel Quezada, Founder and General Manager, Coastal Catch
What value did working with Oikocredit and Future of Fish bring to your business?
Our partnership with Oikocredit has been invaluable, coming at the perfect time to support our company’s growth and impact. Oikocredit believed in our vision to create the first sustainable, profitable, and high-impact business in the industry in Guatemala. With their support, we have positioned ourselves as the largest exporter in the country and have successfully opened new markets both locally and internationally.
A successful business relies on the right partners, and in Oikocredit, we found exactly that. Future of Fish´s goals are aligned with Oikocredit´s and they are working collaboratively towards our envisioned future. We are already witnessing the results of this partnership and anticipate five years of remarkable growth and transformative changes for our industry, our country, and our company.
Can you talk to the changes you have made, or are planning on making to support traceability and sustainable practices that have come out of this process?
To enhance traceability and support sustainable practices, we have undertaken significant measures and plan to implement further improvements based on insights gained from the process. We are working with our suppliers to ensure complete traceability of our seafood activities, from the initial catch to delivery to our clients. This involves training our suppliers to accurately complete necessary documentation, establish effective control measures and track their fishing activities meticulously. We also emphasise the importance of using appropriate equipment to adhere to sustainable practices.
Given that our fleet is artisanal, it is already relatively sustainable. However, the primary challenge lies in maintaining rigorous controls and comprehensive reporting. To address this, we focus on collaborating with business partners who are committed to adopting these practices. We believe this extra effort will foster growth for both our company and our suppliers by creating new opportunities.
In addition to these efforts, we are proud to be the first company to work with Guatemalan public authorities to secure the necessary fishing licences for all our artisanal fishers. This milestone, which has not previously been achieved, is crucial for the advancement of the industry and acknowledges the hard work of our fishers.
Published Oct 07, 2024
