Advocating for a new sustainable, innovative, and decarbonizing paradigm, which finds in the sea an answer to the challenge of global scarcity of terrestrial resources, and bringing together various national industries, the Blue Bioeconomy Pact aims to develop new products, processes, and services resulting from the incorporation of blue bioeconomy goods into new or existing value chains, with a positive impact on the environment, consumers' lives, and national exports. It will invest in 7 sectors - through: application of biomaterials; a new paradigm for bivalve production; marine-based textiles; sustainability in the food sector; increased algae production; circular feeding solutions; bioinformatics for the fisheries sector - and in 3 cross-cutting initiatives aimed at accelerating the development and commercialization of sector products and services - the Portuguese Blue Biobanks network, a digital platform for valorizing marine co-products, and the promotion of growth and internationalization of companies and SMEs.

Thus, the planned investment aims to (i) Drive the development of a cutting-edge industrial economic sector, based on the application of marine biore sources to multiple industries; (ii) Be the first major demonstration of the transversal and ecological potential of marine biotechnology solutions; (iii) Contribute to positioning Portugal in the global context, as a pioneer in a sector estimated to reach €200 billion globally by 2030; (iv) Materialize the great opportunity for growth and innovation in the maritime industries (aquaculture, fisheries, canning) and the differentiation of traditional Portuguese industries currently distant from the sea (textile, cork, fertilizers, human health).

Vertical Bivalves (WP2) is part of the PRR - Blue Bioeconomy Pact project. See the project file HERE.