Finanziaria Ligure per lo Sviluppo Economico – FILSE S.p.A.

Genova, Vigo

Liguria, Galicia

EcoeFISHent demonstrates a replicable, systemic and sustainable cluster for territorial deployment of the climate-neutral CE by creating six multilevel and synergic CVCs and by interconnecting blue-economies and green-economies. EcoeFISHent works to reconcile industrial and economic activities with marine ecosystems and marine protected areas.
 

The EcoeFISHent project's biomass pre-treatment and extraction technologies are innovative and will enable the sustainable and efficient utilisation of fish-processing side streams (FPS) by obtaining bio-actives and galantine for high value-added food supplements and skin care products, biodegradable and compostable barrier layer for food packaging.
 

Other FFS will undergo the Black Soldier Fly larvae bioconversion to yield soil fertiliser, oil for biodiesel, and chitin for cosmetic applications. End of life fishing nets from aquaculture and fisheries will be recycled and converted into automotive polymer-based components and into packaging for cosmetic products. The multilevel interconnected cluster will be managed by a cloud-based platform communicating with physical IoT systems enabling the safe and efficient operation of logistic and transport infrastructure.
 

The cluster business model and the cluster digital twin will stimulate critical and optimal scenarios for the quantitative analysis of the cluster’s performance, which will be measured by dedicated key performance indicators. This business model will also enable the assessment of the cluster’s replicability in other geographic areas and foster investment pipelines. Both community and stakeholder involvement will be promoted in the implementation of specific actions for marine ecosystem preservation. By modelling and applying better practices and technologies, the EcoeFISHent project will strongly reduce by-catch, which is when fish or other marine species are caught unintentionally, and will prevent ghost gear, which is abandoned or lost fishing gear, one of the most harmful forms of marine debris.
 

Furthermore, social and justice inclusion programmes will be implemented by employing disadvantaged individuals to increase overall cluster employment and to apply distributive justice criteria.

The EcoeFISHent project’s key deliverables are to provide or facilitate the following:

• Two industrial scale pilots for side-stream pre-treatment allowing the exploitation of valuable components in FFS (D.2.2 – WP2);
• One pilot for larva breeding (D3.4 – WP3);
• Stakeholder engagement for ghost gear recovery and sustainable fishing techniques implementation (D5.1 – WP5);
• Industrial scale pilot for bioactive extraction to be used in cosmetic and nutraceutical products (D3.1 – WP3);
• Monitoring and management platform for the implementation and widening of the territorial cluster (connecting the nodes and monitoring the flows) (d1.5 – WP5);
• Digital twin for replicability in other territories (D6.1 – WP6); 
• Prototype/sample products in different fields: cosmetics, nutraceuticals, agri-food, automotive, packaging, agriculture, energy (D3.7, D3.8, D3.9 – WP3) (D4.1, D4.2, D4.3, D4.4, D4.5, D4.6, D4.7, D4.8, D4.9 – WP4).

The EcoeFISHent project’s key messages for the implementation of circular systemic solutions (CSS) are:

• territorial industrial symbiosis;
• multi-CVCs to reach zero waste and 100 % circularity;
• connection between environmental, ecosystem, social and economic issues and challenges;
• involvement of local authorities to update regulatory issues allowing the implementation of new processes;
• need to reach economic and environmental sustainability of the new industrial ecosystem in order to assure the continuity over time and to involve new actors;
• push the requests for new regulation, new products and new systems based on circular approach for end users (consumers, citizens, retailers, fishermen, etc.).

The project’s future collaboration with the Circular Cities and Regions Initiative Coordination and Support Office (CCRI-CSO) is as follows:

• innovative CSS on innovative biomass pre-treatment and extraction technologies;
• participation in CCRI webinars and thematic working groups;
• guidelines for regulatory adaptation on the new requests and mythologies of CSS;
• innovative use of bioconversion; 
• stakeholder engagement and co-creation methodology to support the implementation of new value chains and new industrial ecosystems.

Stakeholder agreement of sustainable fishing methods, on the recovery of fishing nets from seabed, and the collection of fishing nets to transform them in new products and materials are all relevant to the CCRI.

The main bottlenecks encountered are the regulations for transportation (inbound and outbound) and the regulations for receiving side-stream products originating from the fish industry, which are considered animal by-products and therefore have specific regulatory procedures.

There is regulation related to end-of-waste criteria.

EcoeFISHent proposes to probe the feasibility of a ‘green bond’ issued by one or more partners for the financing of the project’s unfunded expenses, as well as supporting the partner in the development.

Description of some of the environmental outputs/outcomes generated directly or indirectly by the project:

• Implementation of an eco-design approach to assure lowest environmental footprint.
• Promotion of marine ecosystem protection and regeneration through the active avoidance of by-catch and lowering by-catch rates, cleaning seabed from ghost gears, and avoiding further marine detritus.
• Reduction of wasted biomass by 90 %.
• Avoidance of landfilling large amounts of polystyrene (350 000 tonnes a year in the EU).
• EcoeFISHent shows a reduction of green-house gas emissions, in terms of GWP, of 25.7 % and an average of 57 % in reduction of environmental impacts in all considered impact categories in the bioactive extraction process.
• BioFoam® shows a reduction of 40 % CO2 emissions compared to EPS foam (expanded polystyrene).
• Recycled PA6/PA66 declared a saving equal to 90 % in global warming potential (kg CO2 eq) and a reduction of 65 % in Gross Energy Requirement (MJ-eq).

Description of some social output/outcome generated directly or indirectly by the project:

• Hiring disadvantaged people to be allocated to the collection and transport of side-streams.
• Support local communities’ livelihoods relying on blue bio economy and to apply ethical principles and the principle of distributive justice.
• Local solution for collecting, storing, and recycling aquaculture and fishing nets.
• Consumers and citizens: to be involved in new responsible practices.

Description of some economic output/outcome generated directly or indirectly by the project:

• Interconnect the territorial ecosystem stakeholders and to set up synergic financial flows among the cluster network nodes that interact with stakeholders, which are external to the cluster, to create a resilient, expansive economy.
• Support scalability and replicability of the multilevel CSS in EU and Extra-EU targeted regions by developing the cluster digital twin.
• Design and define a pipeline of investments targeted to support and promote EcoeFISHent in the processes of internationalisation.
• Gross profit for cosmetic and nutraceutical partners (end users).

Industries, Citizens, Retailers

Moreover, other fishing industry side streams will be converted into soil fertilisers, oil for biodiesel, and chitin for cosmetic applications. Even old fishing nets will find new life through their conversion into polymer-based automotive components and packaging for cosmetic products. The EcoeFISHent project’s overall aim is to demonstrate a replicable, systemic and sustainable cluster for the territorial deployment of a climate-neutral CE.

• European Business and Innovation Centre Network AISBL, Belgium
• Federazione Nazionale Cooperative Della Pesca Associazione, Italy
• Cooperativa Armatori Motopescherecci Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy
• Aqua Società Agricola Srl, Italy
• Coop Italia – Societa' Cooperativa Scrl, Italy
• Generale Conserve Societa Per Azioni, Italy
• Omnia Consorzio Opportunità Lavorative Società Consortile in Forma di Cooperativa Sociale Onlus, Italy
• Cooperativa Sociale Il Rastrello Società Cooperativa A Responsabilità Limitata - Onlus, Italy
• Azienda Multiservizi e D'igiene Urbana Genova S.P.A., Italy
• Ge.Am. – Gestioni Ambientali Spa, Italy
• Themis Spa. Italy
• Università Degli Studi Di Genova, Italy
• Angel Consulting Sas Di Matteo Zanotti Russo & C, Italy
• Asociacion Nacional De Fabricantes De Conservas De Pescados y Mariscos-Centro Tecnico Nacional De Conservacion De Productos De La Pesca, Spain
• Nofima AS, Norway
• Nasekomo AD, Bulgaria
• Consorzio Per La Promozione Della Cultura Plastica Proplast, Italy
• Aimplas – Asociacion De Investigacion De Materiales Plasticos y Conexas, Spain
• Green Evolution - Soc Coop, Italy
• I.C.S.S. Industria Cartaria Santo Spirito Spa, Italy
• Gomeh Solutions Ltd, Israel
• Limhealth Srl, Italy
• WWF Italia, Italy
• Panel Of Eminent Development Consultants Limited, Kenya
• Tecnologie Innovative Per Il Controllo Ambientale E Lo Sviluppo Sostenibile Società Consortile A Responsabilità Limitata, Italy
• Micamo Srl, Italy
• Cloud – Consulting And Production It Integration Ltd, Israel
• Wiise Srl, Italy
• Bar Ilan University, Israel
• Ardes Srl, Italy
• Consorzio Di Gestione Dell'area Marina Protetta Del Promontorio Di Portofino, Italy
• Consorzio Per Il Centro Interuniversitario Di Biologia Marina Ed Ecologia Applicata G. Bacci, Italy
• Syspro Automation SL, Spain
• Le Pouvoir Des Idees, France
• Agenzia Regionale Per La Protezione Dell'ambiente Ligure - Arpal, Italy
• Saes Getters S.p.A., Italy
• Project Sas Di Massimo Perucca, Italy