Adding value to fisheries

Sectors in the blue economy are facing challenges (e.g. lack of skills locally, shortage of funding...) that prevent the growth of those emerging work areas with high potential. The "Blue Economy Incubator" project aims to promote innovative solutions addressing selected maritime and marine challenges and opportunities.

The project aims to set up transnational cooperation between FLAGs with potential for developing the FAP processing sector. This offers a valuable opportunity for fishing communities to increase the EU and worldwide market of processed FAPs while reducing overfishing. The project will focus on the following local FAPs: blue crab, mussels, sardines and anchovies.

A group of 9 inland and coastal FLAGs from Poland has found partners from Italy, Latvia and Lithuania to launch a cooperation project that entails the exchange of experience and joint actions, such as study visits to each of the areas involved along 2020-2021.

Local fishermen in Lapland, northern Finland, create a mincing facility to process unwanted by-catch into new marketable products such as fish fingers.

On Ærø Island, a disused boat engine factory has been turned into a community hub supporting local maritime entrepreneurship. The project aims to boost the island’s economy and social cohesion.

The Mostiștea river is a tributary of the river Danube in Romania. The river source is near the village Dascălu, northeast of Bucharest and it flows into the Danube near Mânăstirea. The local economy of the area is predominantly agricultural. Fisheries and aquaculture activities are small-scale and often combined with agri-tourism and recreational activities.

The FLAG territory is in the northwest of Constanta County. In the centre of the territory is the city of Harsova which is surrounded by the four communes of Ghindaresti, Horia, Topalu and Crucea. The area situated between the Danube and the Black Sea is characterised by rolling hills and is steeped in history.

The FLAG area is situated along the river Olt. In the territory are ten urban and rural communes which all have small-scale fisheries and aquaculture industries. Other activities such as agriculture, chemical production, forestry, food and tourism dominate the local economy. Local handicrafts are recognised and sold nationwide.

The FLAG is predominantly located in rural areas where activities such as agriculture and fishing are commonplace. The region is situated between Siret and Prut, in the north-east part of Romania. The territory boarders Ukraine in the north and Moldova in the east. At the west and south it has borders with the Suceava and Iași Counties.

A digital platform developed by and for the shellfish sector simplifies and improves the day-to-day management, control and planning of shellfish activities.