Relentless How Shinkei Is Reshoring America's Seafood Supply Chain | Saif Khawaja
Oct 30, 2025
Saif Khawaja, Co-founder and CEO of Shinkei Systems, revolutionizes seafood processing with the Poseidon fish-harvesting robot. He discusses how traditional methods harm fish quality and explains the humane ike-jime technique used by the robot to extend shelf life. Khawaja shares insights into the demand for high-quality seafood from top restaurants and the importance of traceability in creating a 'Ceremony Grade' standard. He also reflects on celebrating fishermen’s craft and emphasizes the need for transparency in the food industry.
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On-Deck Surgical Processing Boosts Fish Quality
- Poseidon performs ike-jime-style brain spikes and gill cuts on deck to stop stress hormone release and bleed the fish.
- This handling extends shelf life up to three times, improves flavor, and increases yield per fish.
Quality Value Accrues Downstream
- Value from improved handling mainly accrues downstream to retailers and chefs, not to fishermen.
- Opaque supply chains and lack of shelf-life data remove incentives to handle fish properly.
Differentiate Fish With Traceability And Brand
- Create transparent provenance, shelf-life tracking, and handling standards to differentiate commodity fish.
- Package and brand top-quality fish as a new premium vertical to capture downstream value.
