AQUAPHOENIX: Clean Aquaculture - Circular Waste

AQUAPHOENIX is a Horizon Europe (Cluster 6, Zero Pollution) project working to capture and recycle aquaculture waste (commonly referred to as “sludge”). Our aim is to develop and demonstrate an innovative solution to capturing waste - thus reducing emissions and environmental load, enabling sustainable blue food production - and to valorise the conversion of sludge into circular assets including agriculture, aquaculture and energy products. Central to the environmental and blue economy objectives of the EU Mission "Restore our Ocean and Waters”, AQUAPHOENIX directly works to make aquaculture carbon neutral and circular to enable sustainable production, safeguard marine environments, prevent pollution and ensure uptake of circular solutions. As the fastest-growing food industry in the world, aquaculture has the potential to offer healthy, sustainable food to millions. But this growth presents a challenge: fish farms generate waste that can emit nutrients in harmful quantities and pollute marine environments. In response AQUAPHOENIX is developing and demonstrating sludge collection technology: an innovative novel system technology that collects waste from open sea aquaculture pens. Project partners are currently working to test and demonstrate this technology in active fish farms in Norway and Åland, with the goal of developing a portable and scalable solution to enable circularity in the industry. After waste collection, AQUAPHOENIX partners will work to valorise its conversion into clean assets like biogas, novel feed ingredients, and fertilizer. Along with supporting novel policy guidance and governance mechanisms among key European and international actors, these activities will increase clean aquaculture production, reduce emissions and promote healthy seas. In addition to the core values of the EU Mission Ocean and Waters, AQUAPHOENIX aligns with many key European initiatives including: The EU Ocean Pact, The EU Vision for Fisheries and Aquaculture 2040 and in the delivery of EC Communications on the European Guidelines for a Sustainable European Aquaculture (2030) and Blue Bio-Economy. Furthermore, the results of the AQUAPHOENIX project will directly contribute to the development and delivery of many key European strategies including: The Ocean Research and Innovation Strategy (2026), The Water Resilience Innovation Strategy (2026), the Blue Economy Innovation Strategy (2027) and ambitions for the Circular Bio-Economy. As EU ocean strategy and policy matures towards a concept of regenerative and restorative ocean practices, AQUAPHOENIX enables an alignment between blue food production and restorative and regenerative ocean farming practices, allowing for improvements in the sustainable competitiveness of the EU blue economy and food security.