Acme Smoked Fish Foundation Announces 2025 Seafood Industry Climate Award Recipients

$250,000 awarded to support low-carbon and sustainable practices across the seafood sector in North America and Chile

[Brooklyn, NY] – January 23, 2026 — The Seafood Industry Climate Awards (SICA), an initiative of the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation, today announced the three recipients of its 2025 awards.

The annual program honors innovative projects making measurable strides in reducing the seafood industry's carbon footprint while advancing resilience and equity across the sector.

SICA supports innovators working throughout the seafood value chain—from harvesting and aquaculture to processing, materials, and workforce development. This year's three recipients were selected from a competitive pool of applicants across the United States and Canada. Each will receive a $70,000 grant to advance solutions with clear implementation pathways and the potential for meaningful impact within 12 months.

One project was also selected to receive the second annual TD Bank Award, recognizing excellence in workforce development supporting the low-carbon transition.

The 2025 SICA recipients are:

• Bristol Bay Regional Seafood Development Association for its Bristol Bay Climate-Smart Salmon Monitoring project, which utilizes drone technology to support climate adaptation in wild salmon fisheries while training and employing local youth.

• OctaPulse Inc. for its automated phenotyping and deformity inspection technology designed to reduce waste and improve efficiency in fin-fish aquaculture operations.

• Deer Isle Oyster Company for its project deploying plastic-free gear to decarbonize oyster farming, which was selected as the recipient of the 2025 TD Bank Award.

The Seafood Industry Climate Awards, now in its fourth year, were created to address a growing need within the seafood sector for focused investment in climate adaptation and carbon reduction. While the industry has made significant strides in sustainability, climate-specific innovation remains a pressing and underfunded need. SICA was established to elevate and resource innovators developing tangible, scalable solutions capable of transforming the seafood industry into a leader in the global climate movement.

The Seafood Industry Climate Awards are administered by the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting environmental responsibility, innovation, and long-term resilience across the seafood industry.

"At the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation, we're inspired each year by the bold ideas and dedication of the applicants and recipients," said Emily Caslow, Chair of the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation. "These awards are a testament to the ingenuity of the seafood community and its potential to lead in addressing one of the most urgent challenges of our time."

Award recipients were evaluated based on their projects' potential to reduce emissions, the clarity and feasibility of implementation, and their commitment to advancing equity and opportunity within the industry. Applications were reviewed by a panel of judges representing a broad range of expertise across seafood production, sustainability, engineering, sourcing, and finance, including leaders from Acme Smoked Fish, TD Bank, Silver Bay Seafoods, Fortune Fish & Gourmet, Walt Disney Parks & Resorts, and Whole Foods Market.

In addition to grant funding, awardees will be featured in seafood industry media and invited to present their work at key industry events, helping spotlight scalable innovations and accelerate change across the sector. The Foundation also runs parallel Seafood Industry Climate Awards in Chile, granting $40,000 across two innovative projects:

• ReCircuLab ($25,000), for developing a platform to transform industrial waste from the salmon aquaculture industry into high-value products across the food, science, and pharmaceutical industries.

• Hera Materials ($15,000), for its development of WoodPack, a recycled paper film that replaces single-use plastics with zero CO2 emissions.

Across North America and Chile, the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation granted a total of $250,000 in 2025 toward advancing climate solutions.

The SICA awards are funded through Acme Smoked Fish Corporation's 1% for the Planet commitment, under which 1% of sales from all Acme brand cold-smoked salmon retail products are donated to support climate initiatives through the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation's Seafood Industry Climate Awards. The awards are also generously sponsored by TD Bank.

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About Acme Smoked Fish Corporation

Acme Smoked Fish is a fourth-generation, family-owned and operated smoked fish company based in Brooklyn since 1906, dedicated to bringing people together through great food experiences. Tradition and innovation meet at Acme, where their smoked fish experts are on a mission to smoke and cure the highest quality seafood with a commitment to top food safety standards. Acme is also dedicated to sustainability and education through the Acme Smoked Fish Foundation, which supports groundbreaking climate projects across the industry and provides educational grants in local communities. In addition to its Brooklyn headquarters, Acme smokes fish in Massachusetts, North Carolina, Florida, Chile, and Denmark. Its growing product line can be found in supermarkets, specialty stores, bagel shops, and restaurants nationwide.