The final countdown is well and truly on. The Global Shrimp Forum team are busy dotting the Is and crossing the Ts, as we prepare to welcome the industry back to Utrecht for our fourth annual meeting—with this year shaping up to be the best edition yet.
For the final time before they are reunited face-to-face, the Forum’s Managing Director Willem van der Pijl caught up with our inimitable MC Melanie Siggs to cover off how those final preparations are going, as well as musings on what makes the Global Shrimp Forum unique; what we can expect to see from the soon-to-be-published Carbon Guide, and their excitement for a very special guest who’ll be cooking up a storm for our plenary closing session. You can watch the video yourself, and read on to find out more about all of the above!
A Conversation with a Twist
Our ambition at the GSF is to deliver the level of quality, insight and expertise that those visiting us year after year have come to expect, while also continuing to offer something fresh and new. This year, we are delighted to be doing just that by welcoming Sepp van Dijk—better known as ‘The Twisted Chef’—for a conversation with Melanie Siggs during the plenary closing, offering rich insights into his background and experiences.
At just 18 years old, Sepp has already captivated the culinary world as a digital sensation, creating wildly inventive recipe videos that turn everyday cooking into captivating entertainment. With nearly half a million followers gained in just one year and racking up millions of views across TikTok and Instagram, his approach blends bold flavours with playful, accessible techniques that resonate with both food lovers and amateur cooks alike.
Counting Gordon Ramsay among his fans, whether he’s reinventing classics or giving Dutch favourites a cheeky twist, his signature “twist” makes delicious cooking feel universally achievable. Expect a conversation full of excitement as he gives our delegates a taste of the magic which he uses to inspire his generation to turn to seafood—and specifically, to shrimp.
A Breakfast of Champions
Initiated by industry leaders Katherine Bryar and Amy Novogratz, the Women Who Lead breakfast meeting, taking place on the morning of September 3rd, will gather female delegates from across the shrimp value chain for a morning of inspiration, candid dialogue, and community-building. This energising session is designed to spotlight the influence and potential of female leadership in seafood, from hatcheries to boardrooms and everywhere in between.
Held over breakfast, the gathering offers an open and supportive space to connect with peers, share lived experiences, and exchange fresh perspectives on leadership, equity, and innovation. From unspoken challenges to unconscious bias, and from entrepreneurship to pay equity, the session’s table topics promise to spark meaningful conversations led by dynamic voices in the field. All registered female delegates will receive a formal invitation to this special session on w/c August 18th. We encourage you to come early, come curious, and come ready to lead.
Table topics include:
- Viewing the Seafood Industry Through the Female Lens (Esther Luiten)
- The Stuff No One Talks About: Navigating the Unspoken Realities of Women in Seafood (Katie Sokalsky)
- The Benefits of Creating a Solid Woman Support System (Amy Novogratz)
- The Unconscious Biases of the Seafood Industry Revealed (Katherine Bryar)
- Rethinking Power and Value: Feminism, Leadership, and Pay Equity in Seafood (Liris Maduningtyas)
- Breaking Invisible Barriers to Female Leadership in Aquaculture (María Alejandra Cárdenas)
- Women ‘Aquapreneurs’ and the Future of Venture Capital in Aquaculture (Claire Pribula)
- Tides of Change: Leading a FIP in a Sea of Resistance (Libby Woodhatch and Dr. Nimnual Piewthongngam)
The Carbon Copy You’ll Want to Read
With retailers setting net-zero goals and financial institutions requiring emissions reporting, the shrimp industry is feeling the pressure to better understand and reduce its carbon footprint. That’s why the Global Shrimp Forum Foundation (GSFF) has commissioned a first-of-its-kind carbon reference guide: a practical, and accessible tool designed to help shrimp businesses navigate the complex world of carbon emissions with confidence and clarity.
Set to be released ahead of the forum this September, the report responds directly to growing industry interest and need. Funded from the financial surplus generated from previous editions of the GSF, it aims to demystify key carbon concepts like Scope 3 emissions, spotlight where real change is possible, and highlight how climate action can align with business resilience and cost savings. With surprising insights, from how feed ingredients drive emissions to how mangrove mud holds vast carbon stores, the guide will not only inform, but empower too.
The findings from the report will be presented in Utrecht this September by its authors, Roxanne Nanninga and Anton Immink.
Derisking the Seafood Supply Chain—Together
As the shrimp sector faces mounting scrutiny over its environmental and social impacts, the Global Shrimp Forum 2025 is creating space for leadership and collaboration where it matters most. In an exclusive, invitation-only session, retail and food service leaders from around the world will come together to explore how to meaningfully reduce risk across the supply chain—through credible green claims, improved human rights due diligence (HRDD), and effective grievance mechanisms.
Convened by the Global Shrimp Forum Foundation, this retailer-only session offers a trusted space to discuss shared challenges and identify opportunities for pre-competitive action that no single company can address alone. To turn talk into action, the GSF Foundation has committed up to €40,000 in surplus revenue to fund a pre-competitive project identified during the session. The goal: to catalyse real progress on either of the two key themes.
Retailers and food service operators confirmed to attend include Albert Heijn, Ahold Delhaize, Aldi Nord, Carrefour, Colruyt, Co-Op UK, Hello Fresh, Jumbo, Metro Canada, Picard, Red Lobster, Sainsbury’s, and Waitrose—representing a significant cross-section of the global retail seafood landscape.
Guided by Darian McBain and Hugo Byrnes, two seafood veterans, this session will be a rare opportunity for these industry leaders to align, collaborate, and co-create solutions that advance both business integrity and sector-wide sustainability.
Last Chance to Get Your Ticket
Late-bird pricing is now in effect, and if you haven’t got your ticket for the GSF 2025, you do still have time (just!). Tickets are now priced at €1800 (excluding VAT) and can be purchased at the Global Shrimp Forum website.
