Defra have opened a new round of the UK Seafood Fund’s Infrastructure scheme, as part of £100 million UK Seafood Fund.  Round 2 will focus on projects that can build capability across the supply chain through ports, harbours, processing and aquaculture infrastructure.

First round

Funding to boost the UK fishing industry through projects to upgrade infrastructure and revive local docks has been announced, as the latest round of investment opens for bids from the UK-wide £100 million Seafood Fund to modernise the sector.

Winning projects set to receive a share of £20 million include the expansion of processing facilities for popular British fish like Scottish salmon and Cornish sardines, alongside money to bring an ageing dry dock back to life.

The infrastructure scheme also supports businesses to become more environmentally sustainable, with successful bidders in Round 1 investing in greener technologies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to more reusable materials.

Successful bidders from the first round of infrastructure funding will receive a share of £20 million from the government, matched with nearly £50 million of investment from private sources.

Second Round and Fisheries Industry Science Partnerships

For the second round of the UK Seafood Fund infrastructure scheme, which is worth £30 million and has now opened, businesses will have until March 2025 to deliver their transformational projects meaning a wider range of organisations will be able to apply.

Defra will also shortly announce successful applicants from the Fisheries Industry Science Partnerships (FISP) scheme, part of the UK Seafood Fund, which funds data collection and research to support sustainable fisheries management. The final FISP round will launch in December 2022.

Further information and resources

Further Infrastructure scheme rounds will open soon, focussing on fleet modernisation and recreational fishing, and Defra is hosting an online event on recreational sea fishing at 6-7pm on Wednesday 07 December 2022. The MS Teams link can be found on the Infrastructure Scheme homepage here.

• More information on the UK Seafood Fund can be found here.
• The list of successful Round 1 projects is available here.
• You can find more information on the FISP scheme here.