Teagasc Welcomes New Shared Island Investment to Drive Innovation in the Blue Bioeconomy

The €4.5 million investment, recently announced by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, will support the delivery of AIMBIO, All Island Marine Bio-based Refineries for Circular Blue-Bioeconomy. The project is coordinated by Teagasc and brings together a strong all-island partnership of academic, research, and industry stakeholders. It was announced ahead of Bioeconomy Ireland Week 2025, where the blue bioeconomy is one of the core themes being highlighted.

AIMBIO will demonstrate how side-streams from Ireland’s marine and aquatic sectors, including aquaculture and seafood processing, can be transformed into high-value ingredients for sectors such as food, feed, cosmetics, and chemicals. Through demonstration sites in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, the project will provide a real-world testbed for bio-based innovation and circular economy practices.

Teagasc Director, Professor Frank O’Mara, commented: “This is a timely and strategic investment that builds on Teagasc’s strengths in applied research, specialist infrastructure skills development and innovation.  We are proud to lead the collaborative AIMBIO project as part of a broader drive to harness Ireland’s marine bio-resources in a sustainable, circular way.” 

Led by Professor Brijesh Tiwari, Principal Research Officer in Teagasc, and anchored at the National Prepared Consumer Food Centre, Teagasc Food Centre Ashtown, AIMBIO will advance the development and demonstration of high-TRL technologies for the bioeconomy. The project will enhance collaboration with partners from TCD, TUS, ATU, AFBI, and Indigo Rock Marine Research Station, as well as key industry actors across the aquaculture, seafood, and ingredients sectors.

The initiative complements national objectives set out in the National Bioeconomy Action Plan 2023–2025 and supports skills development, green enterprise, and rural innovation, three pillars central to the Bioeconomy Ireland Week agenda. Teagasc will invest in new equipment and facilities at Ashtown using its €1.9 million share of the funding, further strengthening Ireland’s capacity for circular marine bioprocessing and industry-focused demonstration.

More information on Teagasc activities and inputs into Bioeconomy Ireland Week can be found here