Scaling-up EU cultivation of shellfish and algae

Biomass provides about 60% of the EU’s renewable energy. Scenarios for meeting the EU’s objective of carbon neutrality by 2050 suggest that more will be needed, which puts pressure on land resources for other priorities such as growing food and feed and protecting wilderness. It is therefore imperative to know whether growing food and feed in the oceans can relieve this pressure.

There are many questions as to whether algae and shellfish production can be scaled up enough to make an appreciable contribution to the EU’s food supply – either directly or as feed for other species. The subject of this call for tenders is the development and testing of tools (software and maps) that will contribute to the assessment of the feasibility and the impact of scaling-up of EU cultivation of shellfish and algae. The general objective is to contribute to the decarbonisation objectives of the European Green Deal.

The specific objective is to build on the results from previous projects to assess the interaction of shellfish and algae cultivation with the supply of nutrients by improving the modelling and including additional constraints, especially the uptake of toxins and contaminants.

Budget available: EUR 600,000

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