Scotland’s First Minister John Swinney has confirmed that 67 projects will share a total of £14 million in support from the latest round of Marine Fund Scotland.
This year’s awards include seven Shetland-based projects, including support for a Scalloway fisherman seeking to secure a vessel to enter the industry, along with grants for Blueshell Mussels in Brae to enhance its mussel-growing process and to Cooke Aquaculture to trial an innovative water-borne feeding system.
Other awards to island-based businesses include for Vonin Scotland to help establish a net service station for the aquaculture sector at Kyleakin on Skye, initially creating 15 new jobs. This project means nets will now only need to be transported a short distance by boat rather than via an extended road journey to the Central Belt, reducing CO2 emissions, and will improve recycling rates of nets preventing material ending up in landfill or incineration.
‘Our island and coastal communities and the marine industries based here make a huge contribution to Scotland – not just to our economy but also to our efforts to drive innovation and sustainability. I’m very pleased therefore to be here in Shetland to confirm these awards to a wide range of projects, all of which have demonstrated that they will help to drive innovation in the marine sector and help sustain coastal communities,’ said First Minister John Swinney.
‘Over the last four years, Marine Fund Scotland has supported hundreds of pioneering projects that are already contributing to building prosperity whilst at the same time protecting the planet.’
Sectors receiving support include sea fisheries, aquaculture, seafood processing, wild fisheries including wild salmon, projects that tackle marine litter and improve recycling, and the wider marine environment.
