Development & assessment of technology improving fishing operation & on board processing with respect to environmental impact & fish quality

norsk

The onboard fish handling systems, refrigeration systems and energy systems are strongly interconnected, mainly because they are competing for the same space and energy. Therefore, to optimize the fishing vessel in terms of both fish quality, choice of ch illing/freezing technology and energy systems a multidisciplinary approach is necessary. The main focus in this project is to address and solve the technological and economical challenges related to fish quality and energy consumption in the fisheries sec tor, in order to meet the economical and environmental challenges as well as to ensure a high quality product for the consumer. This will be done through (1) improved and automated catch handling and (2) refrigeration technology on board in parallel with (3) improvements of energy systems. The coupled effects of the mentioned technologies and systems will be synthesised in (4) a model predicting both fish quality and environmental effects. The results will be beneficial for the Norwegian fishing fleet, eq uipment vendors and ship-designers. In specific, Norwegian fishing vessel designers will get a competitive advantage by utilizing the methods developed in this project, as they will be able to design more optimized vessels. The Norwegian fishing fleet wil l benefit from vessels with respect to improved fuel consumption, enhanced handling and chilling/freezing systems improving fish quality and costs. Furthermore, The Norwegian fishing fleet will gain from this project through a positive environmental impac t and fish welfare which are potentially good tools in branding, and the results can be used as input for environmental labelling of products. This project will contribute both to increased competence and knowledge and to transfer of knowledge between th e fisheries industry and the RTD institutes.