The Anfaco-Cecopesca consortium and the Clusaga group of Galicia joined the European Impress project, which was created by Teagasc from Ireland and is aimed at promoting the economy based on marine and freshwater biological resources. These solutions are based on the use of less exploited species to generate new forms of economic benefits.
The members of Impress, an alliance of 14 entities from 7 different countries, aim to offer innovative solutions that span the entire food value chain. For this, different companies will have opportunities to adopt updated and sustainable perspectives such as zero waste and circular. Consumers will also be able to adapt to new habits.
Especially with a focus on aquatic species such as roach, sprat and lumpfish that have a low trophic level. These will be used not only for human food products, but also biopesticides, biofertilizers and fish feed. Impress will be responsible for driving circular business models with at least 6 species.
Also, in order to implement a zero waste system, work is being done on the use of liquid and solid waste from processing to obtain high-value nutrients. Experiments will be conducted to see the potential of these nutrient-rich waters to promote the growth of microalgae or lentils. On the other hand, biodegradable mixtures and compounds will also be studied to produce polymer films that can be used as food packaging and coatings that guarantee product preservation for a longer period of time.
In order to have new references regarding the processing industry, an in-depth study needs to be carried out, which will cover everything from the things that currently work to the ideas and preferences of producers and consumers.
