Sea Harvest is Committed to More than Just the Supply of Fresh and Frozen Fish and Seafood
We may be best known for our superior-quality frozen and fresh fish and seafood supply in South Africa, but our company is also very active in the Saldanha Bay community. Although Saldanha Bay is also known for abundance in fresh fish and seafood, the communities in the region face many socio-economic challenges.
As a well-established and JSE-listed company under the strong leadership of Felix Ratheb, Sea Harvest is committed to sustainable fishing practices, and the supply of superior-quality fresh and frozen fish and seafood. However, Sea Harvest is not just committed to sustainable fishing practices. Our company is also a major employer in the Western Cape, and takes social and economic development in local communities seriously.
Part of this commitment entails the provision of bursaries to young people in the Saldanha Bay community and, as the largest employer in Saldanha Bay that makes a considerable contribution to the Saldanha Bay municipality, our company considers it our responsibility to invest in the people that are employed at Sea Harvest. Improving the quality of life of local communities is important, and because Sea Harvest recognises that the rate of unemployment in rural communities is high, our company also invests in the education of youth in these communities.
Sea Harvest has shown its commitment to the socio-economic development of local communities by addressing problems such as crime, unemployment, violence, and substance abuse by funding various projects through the Sea Harvest Foundation. Our company has awarded almost 300 bursaries to students in the community between 2010 and 2015, and over the past two years awarded more bursaries, including R297 000 given to 31 learners in the West Coast region in July 2017. We are also building additional Grade R classrooms at the Diazville Primary School to accommodate extra learners, including the children of Sea Harvest employees, in 2018.
Whether it is the provision of employment on the company’s trawlers used for harvesting of fresh and frozen fish or the provision of internship programmes and apprenticeship programmes, Sea Harvest continues to show exceptional commitment to the education of the young people in the West Coast region. Our company, in partnership with the West Coast School for Special Educational Needs, provides SETA learnership programmes for the students to give them adequate workplace exposure, and thus much needed experience in their particular areas of interest for the purpose of career development and to help them become more employable.
Apart from the commitment to education and sustainable fish and seafood harvesting practices, Sea Harvest has also entered into partnership programmes with the West Coast Business Development Centre to further business development in the region, thereby addressing unemployment. We provide technical and financial support to aid the growth of small and medium sized businesses in the region.
Sea Harvest is also committed to alleviating poverty, as is evident in the fish donations to various organisations as part of our company’s Corporate Social Investment activities. In addition, Sea Harvest supports 24 low-income schools by donating sports kits to help their sports teams excel in their chosen sporting code.
Therefore, when you buy frozen and fresh fish and seafood from the Sea Harvest brand, you also participate in the social-economic development of South African communities and support sustainable fishing practices.