Ireland’s seafood and aquaculture sectors receive European funding

Fifty-one seafood enterprises under 5 schemes have been awarded €4.3m in grand aid from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund Operational Programme, co-funded by the State.

The EMFF was was adopted in December 2015 to provide financial support and leverage investment in Ireland’s seafood sector.

Seafest seafood

Announcing the details, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Michael Creed, said the investment would deliver jobs to coastal  communities, develop new value-added seafood products; develop new markets and increase sales for Irish seafood products, and new processes in aquaculture production, disease management and animal husbanddry.

“These investments will assist seafood enterprises to contribute to the ambitious growth targets we hae set  for our processing and aquaculture sectors.”

Further grant offers under the various schemes are expected “in the coming months”.

Processing

€3.4m awarded to 27 enterprises towards total investment of €19.4m. The investment is projected to create 3016 jobs and additional sales of €77m by 2019.

Scaling and New markets 

€157,000 awarded to 4 enterprises towards total investment of €335,000

Innovation & Business 

€164,000 awarded to 8 enterprises towards total investment of €328,000

Knowledge Gateway 

€199,000 awarded to 4 enterprises towards total investment of €305,000 

Sustainable Aquaculture

€382,000 awarded to 8 enterprises  towards total investment in excess of €1m

Full details: www.bim.ie/schemes

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