The project will run from 2019–2022 with a €945,000 (US$1,048,002) grant from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund under the EMFF-0102018 Blue Labs call. The consortium includes AZTI, GAIKER and ITSASKORDA from Spain; Centexbel from Belgium; and Intrigo from Ireland. AZTI will coordinate, while Intrigo Ltd will lead communication.
“We will generate three rope prototypes with a highly reduced carbon footprint along the whole value chain,” Project Coordinator Leire Arantzamendi said at a kick-off event. “The aim is to develop these as marketable products, whilst minimizing the potential of aquaculture to generate marine litter or release plastic to the sea.”
Currently, the use of biobased plastic that can biodegrade only comprises 1% of all plastic production.