Popeye the Sailor Man celebrated his 95th birthday this year, and while an affinity for the ocean and a compulsion to fight for what’s right have been in his character since his founding, over the last few years Popeye has developed these traits into being a sustainability advocate. King Features Syndicate, a unit of Hearst, and owners of the Popeye brand plans to continue with this direction for the nautical icon, announcing its latest collaboration with Force Blue and launch of its brand-new “Anchored In Sustainability” Guide.
Founded in 2015, Force Blue is a US-based organisation that works with Special Operations veterans to redirect their skills to ocean conservation, with the support and direction of marine scientists and conservationists. Force Blue’s latest initiative is a multi-year ‘Tour of Duty’ of the US National Marine Sanctuaries (NMS), which conserve more than 620,000 square miles of ocean and Great Lakes waters, conducting sea-saving missions at each, from re-establishing coral reefs, cleaning up ocean rubbish or helping animals affected by oil spills.
With the partnership officially kicking off earlier this month at Force Blue’s annual fundraiser, Popeye is now the official spokescharacter and mascot of this campaign, which King Features and Force Blue hopes will drive further awareness of the mission and promote partnerships and sponsorships. So far, Force Blue’s ‘Tour of Duty’ has taken the team to two national marine sanctuaries:
Florida Keys Sea Turtle Research
Force Blue veterans, together with scientists from Inwater Research Group (www.inwater.org) worked to restore NOAA’s Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary by deployed on a week-long mission in August 2024 to survey the Green Sea turtle and Loggerhead turtle populations inside the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, which stretches 202 miles from Biscayne Bay to the Dry Tortugas. The mission, which is part of Force Blue’s NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries “Tour of Duty” also included a day-long public engagement event at NOAA’s Eco Discovery Center in Key West. There, Force Blue veterans helped spread the word about their work inside the Florida Keys National Marine sanctuary, encouraging local citizenry to join in the fight to preserve and restore this national treasure.
Thunder Bay Restoration
Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary in Michigan protects a nationally significant collection of nearly 100 historic shipwrecks in Lake Huron off the Michigan coast. Through research, education, and community involvement, the sanctuary works to ensure future generations can enjoy these underwater treasures. Force Blue veterans used assessed mooring buoy systems, collected samples, mapped beach sites, and removed marine debris.
Local volunteers, civic leaders and corporate partners are involved in the missions, which also always include a public engagement component, to encourage engagement, education and ownership of the areas in the communities.
The collaboration with Popeye is particularly important for the community engagement aspect of the missions, with the character making appearances at each site. With 9.6 million followers on socials, and 85% of people over six years old familiar with the spinach-loving sailor, the inclusion of Popeye in Force Blue’s ‘Tour of Duty’ is set to be a significant asset.
“We are thrilled to pipe Popeye aboard Force Blue’s National Marine Sanctuaries ‘Tour of Duty,’” said Jim Ritterhoff, executive director and co-founder of Force Blue. “As an iconic, undisputed champion of the seas, Popeye has a crucial role to play in helping Force Blue Special Operations veterans educate the public about the importance of preserving and restoring these national treasures.”
“Popeye always fights for what is right,” said Beth Nock, brand marketing director, King Features. “He is the embodiment of teamwork, dedication, and resilience. And as a navy man and clean-sea advocate, marine conservation and veteran support are two causes very close to his heart.”
Beth continued, “Popeye is the ideal spokescharacter to educate and inspire communities to protect our National Marine Sanctuaries and the invaluable ecosystems they support. Enlisting in Force Blue’s Tour of Duty is a very proud moment in Popeye’s history, and it is a privilege for him to serve alongside such dedicated team, raising awareness of their impactful work.”
Popeye first announced his commitment to sustainability and a plastic-free ocean in 2018 and established his advocacy through an array of charitable and eco-friendly product partnerships. In collaborating with Force Blue, Popeye continues this commitment and demonstrates that there is still much more work to do in order to protect our bodies of water and those within.
This eco-driven direction for Popeye is something King Features plans to continue and has exclusively revealed to POC the debut of its “On Land & Sea: Anchored In Sustainability” Guide, which is its next step to keep sustainability at the forefront of the Popeye and Olive Oyl brands.
The trend guide will be published to all King Feature’s partners, providing character profiles and imagery for both Popeye and Olive Oyl. Where Popeye represents water conservation and protection, Olive Oyl advocates for the land through practices such as regenerative farming, renewable energy and native plant gardening. The guide cites themes of zero waste, circularity and eco-friendly materials, with a colour scheme inspired by land and sea and graphics that perpetuate the message of keeping conservation and sustainable practices front and centre.
If interested in viewing the full art guide or have enquiries about a collaboration, contact BrandLicensing@kingfeatures.com. And you can learn more about Popeye’s eco-efforts at Popeye.com
If you would like to support Force Blue’s NMS Tour of Duty, you can do so here.
Or Sponsor a Vet – Support a Special Operations Combat Veteran by sponsoring his or her Force Blue training. Your donation will help fund a recruit’s airfare, accommodation, meals, instruction, dive equipment and training certification dives.
