Description

Oceano Fresco's mission is to contribute to a more sustainable food production, by producing high-quality bivalve species through science-driven aquaculture in a pioneer project in Europe. This is the promoter’s sixth campaign through GoParity, after successfully raising a total amount of € 600.000€, since 2020.

In August 2020, Oceano Fresco started the clam seeds cultivation in a new world-class Biomarine Center in Nazaré that integrates a bivalve hatchery, R&D laboratories, and the company's offices. 

In June 2020, it has concluded the setup of the first off-shore clam farm in the world, occupying 100 hectares, in the south of Portugal, 5 km from Lagos/Alvor coast (Algarve), fundamental to completing the biological cultivation cycle.

The amount raised in the previous campaigns has been used to order cables, chains, concrete blocks, buoys, and lanterns needed to set up the farm and begin exploration. Since then, the company has also bought a twelve-meter boat, that has been improved in Penimar, a shipyard in Peniche, and is in the company’s harbor in Lagos since January 2021.

On top of this, it is building a 22-meter boat in the same shipyard.

At the moment, Oceano Fresco has 2,5 million clam seeds ready to be sent to the off-shore farm in Algarve, which is expected to happen until the end of this month.

The structure of the clam farm is composed of submersed horizontal cables, on which lanterns (plates wrapped in a mesh) will be placed and where the clams will be cultivated.

The off-shore farm is fundamental to complete the biological cycle because, after the spawning and hatchery phase, clams need to grow-out until the adult edible size. At the farm, the clams find the perfect conditions to complete the cycle, with a natural source of food and perfect environmental conditions.

The Impact

Ecosystems provide essential services such as food, freshwater, clean air, and shelter. They mitigate natural disasters, pests, and diseases and help regulate the climate. It is predicted that food production must double by 2050 to meet the demand from the world’s growing population.  A sustainable blue economy’ will play a central role in alleviating the multiple demands on land resources and in tackling climate change. The sector can contribute by promoting sustainable use of aquatic and marine resources and by providing an alternative source of protein that can relieve pressure on agricultural land.

The cultivation of clams is one of the most sustainable alternative sources of protein used nowadays with less environmental impact. This project will therefore have the following impact:

• Once installed, the offshore farm will have the capacity to capture 266,73 tonnes of CO2 per year, based on an estimated annual production of 600 tons of clams. The cultivation of clams is one of the most sustainable alternative sources of protein used nowadays, with less environmental impact, as no chemicals or artificial feeds are used; as they have a filtering function fighting aquatic pollution; and as they capture CO2 in their shell formation;
• By providing an alternative source of protein, the sustainable cultivation of clams will not only contribute to alleviating the multiple demands on land resources, but also to restoring marine resources and the seas’ biodiversity, by being an alternative to intensive fishing.
• At the moment, Oceano Fresco is constituted by 17 people. When the farm’s operation starts, an increase in staff to 100 people is forecasted in the upcoming years.

This project will also have a positive indirect impact on the local economy, mainly in the area where the farm is installed, Lagos by increasing the incomes of the people who work in this sector.

Click here to read the article "Can the ocean feed us sustainably?" written by Rodrigo Clímaco, responsible for the clam farm of Oceano Fresco.

Impact Indicators

44,45 t

CO2 avoided per year

16,67

Hectares for biodiversity

16

jobs created

Contribution to the Sustainable
Development Goals

Sustainable Development Goals

Financial viability

Download Key Investment Information Sheet

Guarantees

This project is secured with a guarantee from the holding company, Oceano Fresco, SA.

The Promoter

About Oceano Fresco S.A.

Oceano Fresco was founded in 2015 by Bernardo Ferreira de Carvalho.

The company is focused on sustainable aquaculture of high-value bivalves (European clams), using scientific research and methods, and an innovative approach in the systematic improvement of aquaculture. Funded in 2015 by Bernardo Ferreira de Carvalho, the company's motto is: “we can regenerate nature if we farm and eat better”. The company is led by a Board of five Directors with scientific, financial, and business experience, including launching and scaling up of start-ups. They are supported by a growing Operational Team (43 people) covering R&D, production, and business and several Advisory Board members with world-renowned fish breeding experts.

The company has built a state-of-the-art Biomarine Center, including a hatchery, labs, and offices in central Portugal, as well as a 100-hectare sea farm off the coast of the Algarve region. With these rare and complementary assets, the company will apply advanced selection and breeding methods to native European clam species of high nutritional and market value, which are presently being replaced in the market by their low-value Asian counterparts (low organoleptic value). 

The team

Bernardo Carvalho

CEO and Managing Director

Entrepreneur and independent consultant for leading companies in agro-genetics, pharma, and banking.

Frederico Reis

CCO and Managing Director

Marketing & Sales senior executive with >15 years in FMCG, Consumer Healthcare, Electronics and food Retail across Europe.

Nuno Arantes Oliveir

Co-founder and Advisory Board Chairman

Life Science executive and entrepreneur. PhD in Genetics. MIT Portugal, NOVA-SBE. 200M Fund. Research at Univ. of California.

Olivier Cottet

Member of the Advisory Board

Plant breeding specialist. >20 years experience managing breeding programs at Syngenta.

Stan Allen

Member of the Advisory Board

Shellfish breeding specialist. Director of Aquaculture Genetics and Breeding Technology Center at Virginia Institute of Marine Science (USA)

Josien Bakker

Non-executive Director Aqua Spark

Francisco Belo

Non-executive Directo, BlueCrow Capital

Rui Rodrigues

Non-executive Director, Indico Capital Partners

Business Model

Updates