In the U.S., accelerators are surfacing from Miami to New England; a group “blue angels” are working to make bluetech the next cleantech; S2G Ventures launched a $100M oceans fund; the Sustainable Ocean Alliance expanded to invest in later-stage companies; and Investable Oceans introduced micro-financing for sea-faring investors.

Ocean health A school of startups is focused on keeping the ocean around: 

• Coral Vita, an alumnus of Sustainable Ocean Alliance’s accelerator, raised a $2M seed fund to advance coral farming. The company operates the world’s first commercial land-based coral farm in The Bahamas;
• Miami-based The Addition Company, which got its start with crowdfunding, is developing a way to 3D print seawalls to combat rising sea levels; and
• Swiss startup Tide Ocean Material is working with a global network of fishers to upcycle ocean-bound plastic.

Aquaculture Aquaculture is the fastest-growing food-production sector. A brood of startups are working to make the industry more efficient and sustainable:

• Santa Cruz, Calif.-based Scoot Science (they’re hiring) develops forecasting tools for fisheries;
• Canada-based ReelData automates fisheries with software that tracks things like feeding times and stress levels of fish; 
• Israel’s ViAqua Therapeutics developed a pill that can boost a shrimp’s immunity to disease;
• Norway-based Manolin offers an automated disease alert system for salmon farmers; and
• Vancouver-based Oceaneos is advancing “ocean seeding” to fatten up wild fish.

Alt-seafood In part because of all that fishing, 70% of the world’s fish populations are already fully used, overused, or in crisis. Enter alt-seafood, an industry that’s projected to grow 28% annually over the next decade. A fever of new companies are developing plant-based seafood alternatives, including Finless Foods, which offers plant-based tuna; San Francisco’s New Wave Foods, which makes plant-based shrimp; and New York-based AKUA, which pioneered seaweed jerky.  This week global behemoth Nestle announced its own line of vegan shrimp—which could be taken as a shot across the bow for these fledgling startups.

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