Supporting Pirarucu Fishing Businesses in the Amazon
The publication “Supporting Pirarucu Fishing” as a Business in the Amazon was developed by the Foundation for Amazon Sustainability (FAS) in partnership with Notre Dame University.
In 2018, the Foundation for Amazon Sustainability and the University of Notre Dame, through the Business on the Frontlines program, worked together to support a vibrant fishing business to serve traditional riverside communities in the Amazon.
In November 2017, the BOTFL team started researching the arapaima – the market, habitat and current supply chain. Leveraging Notre Dame’s contacts with other universities and companies, the team consulted with those with scientific expertise, as well as Whole Foods arapaima importers and other industry experts.
The survey also included a detailed analysis of each step of the value chain, from the communities that capture the arapaima, to the intermediaries that take the fish from the fishermen and transport them hundreds of kilometers downriver to the slaughterhouses in Manaus and nearby municipalities, which process the pirarucu and sell it to end customers. Learn more about accessing the publication.