Context
Infinifish aims to transform European fisheries into more sustainable, resilient, and profitable systems. The consortium of 16 entities across 8 countries works to reduce the carbon footprint and improve operational efficiency in the context of climate change. Infinifish relies on collaboration among research centers, universities, companies, and fisheries management bodies, ensuring that each innovation is backed by scientific evidence and oriented toward sector sustainability.
Objectives
The main objectives include:
- minimizing seabed impact and reducing fuel intensity through innovative fishing gears;
- optimizing fuel efficiency and operations with decision-support systems;
- improving resource utilization with fish processing technologies and products;
- integrating ecosystem models to assess impacts and mitigation strategies; and
- improving the uptake of new technologies in European fisheries.
The methodological approach is based on technological solutions development, pilot trials, analysis of social barriers, and policy action plans to maximize technology adoption. Key innovations cover self-adjusting trawl doors, hydrofoils to reduce fuel consumption, intelligent systems for predicting optimal fishing zones, and tools for bycatch valorization. These solutions will be tested in pilot cases in the NE Atlantic, North Sea, Skagerrak, Celtic Sea, Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean, and Black Sea, combining technological development with socio-economic studies.
AZTI leads the development of technological solutions for climate-resilient and sustainable fisheries. It is also involved in developing, testing, and validating a decision-support system to optimize energy efficiency and reduce emissions, as well as a methodology to implement the collection and silage of fish viscera. Together to the impact assessment and upscaling of these technologies. Finally, it will contribute expertise in fisheries economics and socio-economic analysis.
Website
Participants
SINTEF Ocean (project leader), AZTI, Cukurova University, Hafrannsóknastofnun – rannsókna- og ráðgjafarstofnun hafs og vatna (Marine and Freshwater Research Institute), Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, Melbu Systems, Fiskeridirektoratet (Norwegian Directorate of Fisheries), Eigen Vermogen Instituut Landbouw en Visserijonderzoek (Flanders Research Institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, ILVO), Danmarks Tekniske Universitet (Technical University of Denmark, DTU Aqua), Western Fish Producers’ Organisation, SILECMAR, MLD ApS, Jensen Media
The Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Cefas), Catchwise, Naust Marine EHF
Funding
Horizon Europe (Grant Agreement No. 101181077)
