Sustainable production of spiny lobsters earns prize for Wageningen student

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5 Sep 2008
Unit: MSc Environmental Sciences
Number: P057

 Peter van der Werf, an Environmental Sciences student at Wageningen University, won the 2008 Student Entrepreneur Prize on 4 September. The prize includes a cash award of €5,000. Together with two friends, he began a company that plans to produce lobsters using sustainable methods in the Philippines. He will soon be emigrating to the archipelago.

The prize winner and owner of South Sea Exclusive sees sustainability as the only business strategy that can succeed over the long term. Therefore, Van der Werf's company is going into partnership with an enthusiastic Philippine scientist and specialist in the sustainable production of spiny lobsters (also known as langouste or rock lobsters). The company hopes that this local expertise will enable it to produce lobsters in an entirely sustainable fashion within five years, when it will no longer be necessary to obtain the young lobsters from the wild. The lobsters will then be grown from egg to adult entirely at South Sea Exclusive.
The jury for the Student Entrepreneur Prize praised the unique product and the determination of the young entrepreneur. Pia van Boven, who initiated the competition, presented the cheque to the winner. The prize is awarded annually as an incentive for young entrepreneurs.

Van der Werf was inspired by the work of Greenpeace and the changes that are occurring in the environment. During a trip to the Philippines, he fell in love with the country. In December, he will depart for the island group in order to contribute to sustainable development in the Philippines.
Note to the editor
For more information, please contact Jac Niessen, science information officer of Wageningen UR, Tel: 0317 485003 E-mail: jac.niessen@wur.nl. For more information about South Sea Exclusive, please visit the website website www.southsea-exclusive.com

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