On July 8, 2022, the National Green Tribunal imposed fines on Yashaswi Fish Meal and Fish Oil Company, for “violating environmental laws and conducting activity dangerously affecting residents of Udyavara, Anagudde, Kote, Katapady, Manipura, Kuthpady and Kadekar villages.” The company was also faulted for building too close to coastal zones and was accused by regulators of polluting the local river and endangering marine life, according to The Hindu.1
Pollution complaints can be found in court records as early as March 15, 2021.2 Several plaintiffs filed complaints in court documents in July 2022, according to Casemine.com.3 Another legal petition, this one regarding licensing, was filed against the company on June 28, 2024, according to Indian Kanoon.org.4 In November 2022, the Yashaswi Fish Meal and Fish Oil Company credit rating from Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited was revised from ‘stable’ to ‘positive.’5 In the few years following this credit rating, reviews on Google Maps had complained of a “bad smell” and said that the company had ruined the Papanasini River with pollution.6
This plant relies partially on species that are unsustainable. Among the fish species processed by the plant are Indian oil sardine and mackerel from the state managed waters of Karnataka, according to a 2024 MarinTrust Improver Programme certificate.7 Indian oil sardine and mackerel were classified as “overexploited” in Indian waters, according to a 2021 article in ICES Journal of Marine Science.8 This means that fish are caught faster than they are able to reproduce, shrinking the population and reducing their capacity to recover to healthy levels. Subsequent recent stock assessments, including ones by India’s Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute in 2022, 2023, and 2024, indicate a significant increase in the biomass of Indian oil sardine and fluctuating increases for mackerel, though scientists caution that the boom-bust nature of these fisheries makes it difficult to estimate the longer-term health of these waters.9 This plant was evaluated and became a member of the MarinTrust Improver Programme in 2024.10 The MarinTrust Improver Programme has as its stated goal to help plants make changes that will eventually allow them to be certified by the organization.11
Mangaluru:
Udupi:
Yashaswi Fish Meal and Fish Oil Company failed to respond to a request for comment.12