June 21, 2021

By Lynda Kiernan-Stone, Global AgInvesting Media

S2G Ventures, a multi-stage VC investor across the food, agriculture, ocean, and seafood verticals, announced that it has taken a deep dive, investing in five companies across four countries as part of its inaugural deployments in oceans and seafood through its Ocean and Seafood Fund.

Of this total, S2G led four of the investment rounds with strategic and financial partners, and has take active seats on the boards of three of the companies. 

For years S2G has backed pioneering entrepreneurs and cutting-edge technologies aiming to improve the health and sustainability of our food system, and has deployed capital across the supply chain in innovators looking to create better outcomes for people and the planet, including Beyond Meat, Apeel Sciences, Greenlight Biosciences, MycoTechnology, sweetgreen, and many others.

With a commitment to advance sustainable solutions for the climate, as well as the health of humans and the planet, it follows that S2G Ventures would turn its focus to the oceans. Aligned with these commitments, S2G officially announced its $100 million oceans and seafood investment strategy in August 2020. 

If the Earth’s oceans were equated to an economy – they would represent a “blue economy” consisting of jobs, products, and services valued at $2.5 trillion a year – ranking them as the seventh largest economy in the world, according to WRI.org.

However, as the effects of climate change intensify over time, the oceans have absorbed more than 90 percent of the excess heat trapped in Earth’s climate system since the 1970s. This has resulted in extreme disruptions to weather systems and significant negative effects on the world’s marine ecosystems.

And although seafood accounts for a major category of our shared food system, providing protein for more than 3 billion people, S2G Ventures noted that it has been undercapitalized while capital committed to land-based fish farming systems have accelerated.

Carrying forward S2G Ventures legacy, the Oceans and Seafood Fund, (the largest of its kind in North America),  takes a consumer-focused and data-driven systems investing approach, seeking out investments that will build marine ecosystem resilience, de-risk the ocean supply chain, maximize the value of natural resources, and support both animal and human health.

“The entrepreneurs that we have invested behind are doing incredible work in making our oceans and water ecosystems more resilient and sustainable,” said Kate Danaher, managing director, S2G Ventures, “Sustainably managed and healthy ecosystems are a pillar of global environmental recovery, a driver of economic growth, and a foundation for food security and human health.”

Over the past nine months, S2G has invested in:

ReelData:  Founded in Canada in 2018 by Mathew Zimola and Dr. Hossein Salimian, ReelData software platform uses sensors, AI, and user-friendly interface to improve the profitability, sustainability, and scalability of land-based aquaculture operations. The company’s SAAS products include AI-informed feeding systems and biomass estimation and health/stress analytics that provide producers with predictive data that enables them to achieve a level of systems optimization, and automation to better manage risk and achieve greater profitability. 

ViAqua Therapeutics – Based in Israel, and founded in 2014 by Shai Ufaz, and Shai Einbinder, ViAqua is a biotechnology developer of an orally delivered RNA-particle platform to improve the health of aquaculture animals. The company’s initial therapeutic uses a proprietary double-strand RNA (dsRNA) particle encapsulation that triggers an anti-viral RNAi response in shrimp cells to fight and suppress white spot syndrome. From this beginning, S2G believes that ViAqua’s technology has the potential to expand across all aquaculture species where cost-effective RNA production and novel delivery systems, such as nano and micro encapsulation, are needed. 

Moleaer – Founded in 2016 by Warren Russel and Bruce Scholten, this U.S.-based company develops industrial-scale nanobubble production technologies able to achieve great improvements in chemical-free water treatment, sustainable food production, and the recovery of natural resources. It’s patented technology most notably improves irrigation water quality and increases crop yields, while restoring bodies of water by removing harmful algae and pathogens resulting in better fish health, production, and ecological resilience. 

Ocean Surveillance Company – A developer of technology used to track dark vessels – generating invaluable data to combat illegal maritime activities for greater efficiency and safety in global shipping.

Fishmeal and Oil Technology Company – Based in the U.S. this company holds proprietary zero-waste fishmeal and oil production technology used to convert low-value resources into high-value products in a sustainable and cost-effective way. S2G states that it sees future potential in the expansion of this platform to maximize the value of global protein production in existing fisheries, to combat invasive aquaculture species, and to reduce pressure on overfished wild stocks.

“We are at an inflection point where it’s possible to harness technological innovations and reimagine the industry in a way that is beneficial for the planet, consumers, investors, and the economy.” said Larsen Mettler, managing director, S2G Ventures. “We see huge potential in this sector and look forward to long-term collaboration with entrepreneurs, strategic partners and other investors who are excited about this market opportunity.”

Lynda Kiernan-Stone is editor with GAI Media, and is managing editor and daily contributor for Global AgInvesting’s AgInvesting Weekly News and  Agtech Intel News, as well as HighQuest Group’s Oilseed & Grain News. She can be reached at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.com.