Tropical Aquaculture Farmers
US-based fresh seafood importer and sales cooperative for aquaculture farms, now defunct after Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
SeafoodSource – Tropical Aquaculture Files for Chapter 7 BankruptcyTropical Aquaculture Products, Inc. (potentially referenced as "Tropical Aquaculture Farmers") was founded in 1995 and headquartered in Rutland, Vermont, with an additional office in Rockland, Maine. The company served as the sales, marketing, distribution, and accounting arm for a cooperative of aquaculture farms operating across multiple countries, supplying fresh seafood to North American customers.
The company handled a range of aquaculture species including tilapia (Chitralada and Oreochromis), Pacific white shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei), rainbow trout, steelhead trout, and organic Atlantic salmon. It operated as a vertically integrated business, maintaining standards from hatchery through delivery, with round-the-clock harvesting and daily air freight to customers.
Prior to its closure, Tropical Aquaculture Products was regarded as one of the first US businesses to import fresh, premium tilapia, and recorded gross revenues of just over USD $36 million in 2020. In February 2020, the company was acquired by São Paulo, Brazil-based GeneSeas, but subsequently filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, officially ceasing all operations. At the time of filing, assets stood at approximately USD $1.07 million against liabilities exceeding USD $1.78 million.