Sakana Consultants

Sakana Consultants is a French consultancy based in Brest that specialises in the seafood sector — fish, shellfish and algae (seaweeds). The firm positions its work within the framework of Sustainable Development Goal 14, which calls for conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas and marine resources. Rather than acting as a generalist advisory firm, Sakana focuses on gathering and interpreting economic data across the different segments of the seafood value chain: wild fishing, aquaculture, seafood processing and ancillary activities. The company assists clients in understanding market dynamics for seafood products at both local and global scales. Its methods range from value chain analysis to more in-depth econometric modelling. Sakana has applied these techniques to several projects connected to the 2016 British referendum (the Brexit referendum), including a report commissioned by the European Parliament on Brexit and the seafood sector. Since its launch in 2015, Sakana Consultants has developed several bio-economic models. Its work includes implementing simulation models to foster discussions among stakeholders — notably in Indonesia — elaborating optimisation models to support marine spatial planning, and developing novel approaches to explore the depredation phenomenon through the ORCADEPRED project. The firm describes a proven track record of innovative approaches that integrate bio-economic models into wider discussions with stakeholders such as fishers, NGOs and administrations. Sakana also engages with Fisheries Improvement Projects (FIPs), which were initiated at the beginning of the 2000s as a tool to engage the entire seafood supply chain towards a common goal: fostering change in fisheries management and improving the status of a fishery by favouring the adoption of a precautionary approach. The company is a small, privately held specialist consultancy rather than a large corporate group, and its public profile is built around technical expertise in fisheries economics, modelling and stakeholder facilitation.

Sakana Consultants was launched in 2015 and is based in Brest, France, a city with a strong maritime and ocean-research identity. From the outset the firm defined itself as a specialist of the seafood sector, covering fish, shellfish and algae (seaweeds), and framed its mission around Sustainable Development Goal 14 — conserving and sustainably using the oceans, seas and marine resources. The company built its practice on gathering and interpreting economic data across the seafood value chain: wild fishing, aquaculture, seafood processing and ancillary activities. Its analytical toolkit spans value chain analysis and more in-depth econometric analyses, allowing clients to understand market dynamics for seafood products at local or global scale. A significant strand of Sakana's work has concerned the consequences of the 2016 British referendum — the Brexit referendum — for the seafood sector. The firm applied its techniques in several projects following the referendum, notably in a report commissioned by the European Parliament. Since its launch, Sakana Consultants has developed several bio-economic models. These include simulation models used to foster discussions among stakeholders, notably in Indonesia; optimisation models to support marine spatial planning; and novel approaches to explore the depredation phenomenon through the ORCADEPRED project. The company presents this as a proven track record of innovative approaches that integrate bio-economic models into wider discussions with stakeholders such as fishers, NGOs and administrations. Sakana also works in the context of Fisheries Improvement Projects (FIPs), which were initiated at the beginning of the 2000s as a tool engaging the entire seafood supply chain towards a common goal: fostering change in fisheries management in order to improve the status of a fishery by favouring the adoption of a precautionary approach. Over the last 20 years, the FIP model has become a widely used mechanism in seafood sustainability work, and Sakana positions its advisory services within that landscape. The firm remains a small, privately held specialist consultancy. Its public identity rests on technical expertise in fisheries economics, bio-economic modelling and stakeholder facilitation rather than on scale or a broad corporate portfolio.

• 2016

  British referendum (Brexit referendum) takes place; Sakana subsequently applies its techniques in several related projects.

• 2015

  Sakana Consultants is launched, based in Brest, France.

• Report on Brexit and the seafood sector commissioned by the European Parliament.

• Simulation models implemented to foster stakeholder discussions, notably in Indonesia.

• ORCADEPRED project develops novel approaches to explore the depredation phenomenon.

• Optimisation models elaborated to support marine spatial planning.

Specialist consultancy for the seafood sector, linking economic analysis and bio-economic modelling to sustainable marine resource management (SDG 14).

• Economic data collection and interpretation for seafood sectors

  Gathering and interpreting economic data on wild fishing, aquaculture, seafood processing and ancillary activities.

• Value chain analysis

  Analysis of seafood value chains to understand market dynamics at local or global scale.

• Econometric analysis

  In-depth econometric analyses of seafood markets.

• Bio-economic models

  Several bio-economic models developed since Sakana's launch in 2015.

• Simulation models

  Models implemented to foster discussions among stakeholders, notably in Indonesia.

• Optimisation models for marine spatial planning

  Optimisation models elaborated to support marine spatial planning.

• ORCADEPRED project

  Novel approaches to explore the depredation phenomenon.

• Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP) support

  Engagement with FIPs, a tool engaging the entire seafood supply chain towards improved fisheries management.

1. 1Sakana Consultants | Fisheries Specialistssakana-consultants.com
2. 2Sakana Consultants (France) - Wikidatawikidata.org