A fisher-owned society, registered in 1966
NATFISH was built so that Belizean fishers could combine their effort and reach markets no single fisher could reach alone.
National Fishermen Producers' Co-operative Society Ltd.
NATFISH is the working digital name for the Society.
Registered on 29 April 1966
29 April 1966.
The Society and its by-laws were registered on 29 April 1966. From that point National Fishermen has operated as a fisher-owned cooperative in Belize, with its members at the centre of the organization.
The cooperative's stated objects include helping members produce, process, market, distribute and sell their products more efficiently. That purpose still describes what the Society does.
- Registered 29 April 1966
- Ownership Fisher-owned cooperative
- Governance Managing committee elected by members
- Base Belize City, Belize
Sources: FisheryProgress institutional strengthening report and FishWise.
Members own it, and members govern it
NATFISH is owned by the fishers who make it up. Members elect a managing committee, and that committee serves as the board overseeing the Society.
- 01 Fishers Members harvest in Belizean waters
- 02 Cooperative Members combine effort and reach
- 03 Processing Handling, grading and preparation
- 04 Market Buyers at home and abroad
Behind every product is a fishing community
NATFISH was built around the cooperative model, creating a collective structure through which Belizean fishers can connect their work at sea with processing and market opportunities.
A cooperative gives a fisher more than a buyer for the day's catch. It gives a share in the organization, a vote in how it is run, and a route to markets that would otherwise be out of reach.
Photography on this page is concept imagery prepared for the website presentation. It does not depict identified NATFISH members, staff, vessels or facilities.
Sourced milestones
Only milestones supported by the public record are listed. Further history will be added once NATFISH confirms it.
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1966
The Society is registered
The Society and its by-laws are registered on 29 April 1966.
Source: FisheryProgress
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Ongoing
Traceability and catch documentation
NATFISH has participated in electronic catch-documentation and seafood traceability initiatives with fisheries partners.
Source: FishWise
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Ongoing
Spiny lobster Fishery Improvement Project
NATFISH has participated in Belize's spiny lobster Fishery Improvement Project alongside sector partners.
Source: FishSource
See what the cooperative brings to market
Lobster, conch and the cooperative functions that carry a member's catch from the water to a buyer.