An ocean activism startup that was acquired and made into a separate company by Milwaukee sustainable food company Agricycle has a two-fold mission – to save the world's coral reefs and add supply to the global seafood industry.
Operated from the Pritzlaff Building in Milwaukee's 3rd Ward, Olacoral acts as a bridge between fishing communities and larger players in the seafood industry. The company also works to use the fish for jewelry.
Because lionfish are not native to Atlantic waters, they have very few predators and have become a threat to coral reef ecosystems by feeding on smaller fish that call it home, according to the National Ocean Service, an office within the U.S. Department of Commerce National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
“There wasn’t a market-based solution that was independent of donations – so we had the idea to sell lionfish jewelry in the U.S., but that wasn’t going to make a big enough impact," said Olacoral co-CEO Anthony Valiulis. "That’s when we thought about using the whole lionfish. With Agricycle’s guidance, we’ve been able to create a solution for wholesaling lionfish fillets and using lionfish in new and innovative ways.”
Agricycle operates in a similar way by using their network of farmers to make food products using its solar dehydrators. The company's solar dehydrators dry natural fruit from more than 35,000 rural farmers across the world to create shelf-stable snacks.
In early 2020, Agricycle closed a $1.5 million funding round to grow the business, around the same time it launched Jali Fruit Co., a brand of sun-dried fruits grown by women farmers in sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean.
“We never thought about how an invasive species could be an overabundant resource, which is exactly what Agricycle is focused on," said Agricycle CEO Josh Shefner. "Because of Olacoral’s insight, lionfish became a potential tool for economic development in rural communities."
Agricycle co-founder Claire Friona, who created the dehydrator as part of a class at the Milwaukee School of Engineering, is leading Olacoral as co-CEO.
