Pacto da BIOECONOMIA AZUL | WP5 Algae Vertical & WP9 Portuguese Blue Biobank

Defending a new sustainable, innovative and decarbonizing paradigm, which finds in the sea an answer to the challenge of the global scarcity of land resources, and bringing together various national industries, the Pacto da Bioeconomia Azul (Blue Bioeconomy Pact) plans to develop new products, processes and services resulting from the incorporation of goods from the blue bioeconomy in new or existing value chains, with a positive impact on the environment, on consumers’ lives and on national exports. It will invest in 7 sectors – through: application of biomaterials; new paradigm for shellfish production; marine-based textiles; sustainability in the food sector; increased algae production; circular feeding solutions; bioinformatics for the fisheries sector -, and in 3 transversal initiatives aimed at accelerating the development and commercialization of products and services in the sector – the Portuguese Blue Biobanks network, a digital platform for the valorization of marine co-products, and in the promotion of growth and internationalization of companies and SMEs.

Thus, the planned investment aims to (i) Boost the development of a cutting-edge industrial economic sector, based on the application of marine bioresources to multiple industries; (ii) Be the first large sample of the transversal and ecological potential of marine biotechnology solutions; (iii) Contribute to positioning Portugal in the global context, as a pioneer in a sector that is estimated to reach €200 billion globally in 2030; (iv) Materialize the great opportunity for growth and innovation in sea industries (aquaculture, fisheries, canning) and to differentiate traditional Portuguese industries that are now far from the sea (textiles, cork, fertilizers, human health).