LIGURIA PIONEERING CIRCULAR ECONOMY INNOVATION: PRIMED, EU-backed project transforms fish waste into agricultural bio stimulants
The FISH2FARM project crafted and presented by the Cooperativa Armatori Motopescherecci (the Motor Fishing Vessel Owners’ Cooperative) of Santa Margherita Ligure, was selected as one of the winners of the First Open Call arranged by PRIMED, the EU-backed project dedicated to the promotion of circular models within the bioeconomic field.
Funded by the Horizon Europe program, PRIMED includes the Ligurian Financial Agency for Economic Development (FILSE) amongst its partners, and will launch a Second Open Call in 2025 targeting startups, spin-offs as well as SMEs, aiming to support the development of bio-based materials, technologies, ingredients, or products within its 5 Living Labs, including the Liguria Bio-Lab. The latter, coordinated by FILSE, particularly strives to demonstrate as well as develop circular value chains that utilize both fishing and agri-food waste to create high-value products such as supplements, cosmetics, fertilizers, biodiesel, and bioplastics.
The FISH2FARM project, financed by the 2024 Open Call, focuses on the production of agricultural bio stimulants from fish waste. Its main objective is to transform the Cooperative’s cost of fish waste into a useful resource, thereby fostering a new sustainable supply chain. The project builds on the core foundations of the FiSH initiative (2019–2023), financed by the Liguria Region’s Rural Development Program (RDP), which attested to the agronomic effectiveness of a natural fertilizer derived from fermented fish waste and tested on horticultural as well as floricultural crops. The strikingly promising outcomes obtained through the first lab prototype are now going to be capitalized to automate the entire process and scale-up production, supported by a €50,000 non-repayable grant awarded under PRIMED’s First Open Call. Mectrotech, based at FILSE’s BIC Incubator in Genoa, is an innovative company specializing in high-tech design as well as prototyping and it is a truly crucial supporter in this initial phase. The company is already developing machinery to automate local, zero-kilometre production which will be implemented at the Cooperative’s headquarters in Santa Margherita Ligure.
By merging technological innovation together with traditional production practices, FISH2FARM exemplifies how Liguria can lead the transition towards regenerative economic models, creating shared value for the entire territory and paving the way for replicable solutions across the Mediterranean.
Find out more about the upcoming PRIMED Open Call by clicking on the following link: https://primed-project.eu/open-call
