Fish Farming Expert contributor joins Indian sustainability network
Fish Farming Expert contributor and former Friend of the Sea board member Amod Ashok Salgaonkar has been appointed to the advisory board of the Sustainable Seafood Network of India (SSNI), which aims to bring together policy makers, scientists, industry members, sustainability professionals, organisations and similar peers to develop a sustainable seafood ecosystem in India.
SSNI chairman Dr K Sunil Mohamed, former head of the Molluscan Fisheries Division at the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute of India (CMFRI), said: “I strongly believe that Amod’s entry will help us build a stronger movement as he comes with a lot of experience of various portfolios.”
Dr Ranjit Suseelan, SSNI’s convenor, said Salgaonkar has an understanding of both the Indian and global sustainable seafood scenario.
“He is perhaps the youngest member in our team and we are counting on him for spreading the sustainable seafood initiative aggressively within the country,” added Suseelan.
Building capacity
SSNI works to interact with and influence local government and government agencies and has established links with development agencies and stakeholders and mobilises development resources / funds from alternative sources. The organisation provides training and education and also runs capacity building programmes regarding sustainability in collaboration with fisheries universities and vocational institutions.
Salgaonkar said he thanked SSNI for providing an opportunity.
“Having mixed experience of the seafood trade across different verticals viz domestic trade, international trade, modern trade, e-commerce and ability to couple it with sustainability, I think I may be able to drive the mission with passion,” added Salgaonkar.
More awareness
“Globally ESG (Environment, Social, Governance) is becoming a major phenomenon for driving businesses sustainably and I am willingly looking to work on the ESG framework in seafood businesses as per guidelines of the UNGC (United Nations Global Compact) which covers aquaculture, fisheries and seaweeds.
“Various organisations have adopted the framework and more awareness is required to speed up the activity.
“Additionally, I see ‘alternative seafood’ (plant-based, cell-grown, fermentation, etc) as one of the emerging segments and scientifically developed techniques may bring new sources of food for feeding billions of people. It’s at a very niche stage presently and will grow significantly in coming years.”
Salgaonkar recently delivered a speech titled “Increasing Importance of Blue Bonds and Sustainable Finance” at the 2nd World Fisheries and Aquaculture conference held online last month and also on alternative seafood at the Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) in April 2022 as a guest lecturer. He can be contacted at amod@a2s2enterprises.com.
