FishWise Doubles Down on Global Partnerships to Scale Accountability in Seafood Supply Chains in East Asia

Santa Cruz, CA, April 8, 2026 — FishWise today announced two Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with Seafood Legacy Co., Ltd. and Ocean Outcomes, marking a significant step forward in aligning global efforts to drive transparency, accountability, and human rights protections across seafood supply chains.

At a moment when seafood companies and communities are navigating unprecedented market volatility and rising expectations on traceability and due diligence, the partnerships reflect a continued focus on turning commitments into consistent, on-the-ground action.

“The future of sustainable seafood depends on whether the industry can deliver real accountability at scale,” said Jenny Barker, Executive Director of FishWise. “By aligning across regions and partners, we are helping scale transparency and human rights protections across global supply chains so that progress is durable, not optional.”

MoU with Seafood Legacy

By extending its partnership with Seafood Legacy, FishWise will support efforts to normalize sustainable seafood in Japan, combining global best practices with local market leadership and networks. The collaboration will focus on strengthening transparency and traceability, advancing human rights due diligence, and aligning industry engagement across regions.

“We see this collaboration as a critical step toward making sustainable seafood the norm in Japan and across Asia,” said Wakao Hanaoka, CEO and Founder of Seafood Legacy. “Our focus now is on turning ambition into execution by strengthening accountability, aligning stakeholders, and scaling what works across the region.”

MoU with Ocean Outcomes

In parallel, FishWise’s MoU with Ocean Outcomes expands collaboration in priority fisheries and supply chains, with a focus on scaling data-driven approaches to transparency, traceability, and accountability. This includes advancing electronic monitoring, strengthening human rights due diligence, and better aligning buyer and producer engagement to drive impact where it is most needed.

“Partnering with FishWise allows us to further connect what’s happening on the water with what’s expected in the market,” said Kelly Harrell, Executive Director of Ocean Outcomes. “By aligning fisheries improvement efforts with buyer expectations on traceability and human rights, we can close critical gaps and drive more consistent results where it matters most.”

Building on this shared focus, the two partnerships reflect a more deliberate effort to connect work across North American and East Asian markets, creating a stronger foundation for collaboration and joint engagement with industry to accelerate measurable progress. This also builds on broader alignment across the ecosystem, including a separate MoU between Ocean Outcomes and Seafood Legacy, and signals how all three organizations are working to deepen their collective influence across East Asian seafood supply chains.

FishWise has always strived to play a convening role across the seafood system, bringing together retailers, suppliers, and producers to strengthen traceability, improve sourcing practices, and advance human rights due diligence. Through this approach, it helps move companies from fragmented efforts to more consistent, accountable systems at scale.

Both of FishWise’s agreements are designed to enable collaboration, with specific initiatives and funding arrangements to be developed through future agreements.