Willem van der Pijl owns Shrimp Insights, is the co-founder and managing director of the Global Shrimp Forum, and is a strategic advisor to the Global Shrimp Council. In addition to his own publications, he works for various consultancy clients, including shrimp importer Klaas Puul, Indian space-tech start-up GalaxEye, and the International Finance Corporation.
You have a rich career in the industry. What initially lead you to this field?
When I studied cultural anthropology and did my MSC degree in international development studies, I encountered a call for interest in a professional looking for a student who wanted to look at the shrimp fishery in Chennai. I started to work with this professor to define my research project. The main question I tried to answer was how you could explain the strategic behaviour of Indian shrimp exporters about the external challenges that they are confronted with. What is their perception of their agency in dealing with these challenges? And based on that understanding, can you predict who will be future frontrunners and who will be the laggers?
Since then, I have worked for an applied research institute, a global non-profit organisation, built a start-up (seafood-tip today known as Kontali Shrimp), worked for an impact investment fund, and today run my own Shrimp Insights publication and consultancy service. I publish the shrimp blog, shrimp bytes, and industry reports. My consultancy clients include a wide range of stakeholders from the industry, including major importers, investors, technology companies, feed manufacturers, and non-profit organisations. I was the co-founder and managing director of the Global Shrimp Forum. And I am a strategic advisor to the Global Shrimp Council.
You’ve been involved in the shrimp industry since 2011 and have developed a deep understanding of its various segments. Can you share some of the most significant changes you’ve observed in the industry over the past decade?
When I started, India was at the beginning of the transition to L. vannamei. At that time, the Indian shrimp industry was gearing up for an extended period of exponential growth. Although there were challenges, the development of the industry at that time seemed unlimited, and the companies that were driving the growth were making fortunes.
Unfortunately, those times have changed. With the sudden increase of production from Ecuador, which results from investments in its shrimp genetics, the shrimp farming and processing infrastructure, and the technification of its farms, the world is now confronted with an oversupply situation. Shrimp farmers are struggling to make a living and must adjust their production models to remain profitable. The energy in the industry has changed. People seem to have been caught by surprise. Today, they adapt their business models and show hope for a better future. I’m sure that those who show to be flexible and can adjust to the new reality will be the ones that will build a more resilient future for the industry moving forward.
With the growth of the industry, we have seen rapid consolidation. This has resulted in some companies, such as Santa Priscila, Omarsa, and Minh Phu, reaching new scale levels. Moving into a new maturity stage means the industry becomes more investment-ready. Institutional investors such as IFC and FMO, VCs such as Ocean 14, Aqua-Spark, and S2G, and also PE firms such as Permira have found their way into the shrimp industry. With the industry getting bigger and these investors and the NGOs that follow them joining in the space, the industry needs to focus more on handling concerns about the industry’s social and environmental sustainability in the best way possible. This will only become more important now that the Global Shrimp Council has started promoting shrimp as a preferred option for consumers worldwide.
What motivated you to leave STIP and start Shrimp Insights? How does Shrimp Insights differentiate itself from other consultancy services in the aquaculture industry?
All my publications are open access. Because access to information about the industry will benefit the industry as a whole. It will make the industry more transparent and help people to make better business decisions. I publish in-depth reports (such as the recent one on India), long-read blogs on various topics, and quick data-oriented shrimp Bytes. By reading my content, you will feel up-to-date about the state of the industry. My mailing list has almost 5000 subscribers from all levels of seniority, geographies, and supply chain segments. I’m proud that all of these people look forward to receiving my publications.
As a consultant, I’m unique. I do not have a technical or commercial background in the industry. However, I have been fortunate to travel worldwide and experience the shrimp industry in many places. The combination of my roles as a publisher, consultant, and event organizer put me in a unique position as a matchmaker, analyst, and advisor.
I try to use that position and the influence that comes with it to contribute to a more sustainable industry that produces healthy and sustainable protein while taking care of the environment and people around it.
Having travelled extensively and lived in countries like India, what are some of the most significant differences and similarities in shrimp farming practices you’ve observed globally, and how do these insights inform your current advisory work?
The main difference is between production systems and the scale of operation. What shrimp farmers and the people around them share across geographies is their passion for the industry. And that’s what keeps me attracted. This passion for the industry is addictive. It keeps me going to understand the people in the industry better and help make it a better industry for all.
About those differences in systems. We are dealing with an industry with plantation style 1000 ha farms in Ecuador and other Latin American countries, small 1 ha farms in countries like India and other Asian countries. Then we are dealing with farms that stock their ponds with less than one per m2 up to farms that stock 500 pcs per m2. The variety in the size of operations and the type of production systems makes it extremely hard to generalise assumptions and ideas about the industry. Every country, and even every region, has its own farm characteristics, shaping business models for the companies around them. It’s endlessly fascinating.
You emphasise the importance of data in understanding industry dynamics. How do you source and analyse data for your reports, and what types of data are most critical for making informed decisions in the shrimp industry?
Yes, in that sense, I’m a strange cultural anthropologist. I need data to understand the industry and the people’s perspectives that drive it. Much data is publicly available, but it often needs to be more organized. I source and organize the data and then use it to share insights. This is primarily related to trade data and other data related to broodstock, feed, and other inputs. Some data is not publicly available, in such cases my network and relationships are essential to obtain reliable information.
Having data and sharing insights from it also helps me to develop relationships further and trust in the industry. People appreciate my work and the fact that I share it freely and in return people often share information with me which they would most likely not quickly share with others. Eventually this helps me to further build my understanding of the industry and helps me to execute my consultancy in the best way possible.
Speaking about data. One of my favourite consultancy clients is GalaxEye Blue. An Indian space tech start-up which is monitoring the shrimp industry from space. They can now monitor and predict shrimp supply in the state of Andhra Pradesh in India. Soon they will add other states in India and countries such as Ecuador to their dashboard. I’m sure their ‘Track’ product will soon become a most wanted in the industry. I gladly invest my time in supporting the company because I truly believe in their potential to help
Looking ahead, what do you see as the biggest challenges and opportunities for the shrimp industry, particularly in light of current global economic and environmental trends? How is Shrimp Insights preparing its clients to address these?
There is too much to say but let me highlight one of the projects I’m proud of. Of course, retailers increasingly desire more sustainable shrimp. They often have ambitions that go beyond certification. This means their suppliers must convince producers to do additional work for them. This can be challenging.
For one of the largest Dutch importers, Klaas Puul, I have managed a consortium of companies delivering one such sustainable shrimp product to Albert Heijn supermarkets in the Netherlands today. This shrimp is produced with a more sustainable feed (with Skretting, Protix (insect meal) and Veramaris (algae oil) and remaining marine ingredients MarinTrust certified) and without ablating the female broodstock. My role has been to manage the consortium’s different interests and develop a proposition that worked for all parties involved.
This has been a challenging but enriching project with a great impact on the industry. Not only directly through the product delivered to Albert Heijn Supermarkets, but also indirectly as an example for other retailers and suppliers across the industry.
