FAMENET stories

Along the coast of Cádiz in southern Spain, producer organisation OPP72 is helping small-scale fishers secure fair markets and protect their future. Established in 2010, this organisation brings together around 70 producers and 59 vessels from the ports of Conil, La Atunara, and Rota.

Fishers are a cornerstone of Germany’s Baltic coastal communities, but as fish stocks dwindle and profits shrink, many are being forced out of the industry. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the EU-funded Sea Ranger programme offers a bold solution

On frozen Lake Inari in northern Finland, small-scale fishers are sustaining a generations-old way of life. As climate change is making their livelihood increasingly uncertain, the Sámi Education Institute is helping them adapt.

At the northern tip of Denmark, the Port of Skagen, the nation’s largest fishing port, is shifting to cleaner energy. With EU support, the port is moving away from diesel-powered generators and installing fully electric power coming from shore for the energy-intensive unloading process

Onake, an artisanal smokehouse in Saint-Jean-de-Luz in France’s Basque country, has built a reputation both nationally and internationally thanks to its focus on high-quality smoked salmon, trout and other seafood from the Basque region.

For more than 30 years, EU funding has helped support the transformation of Bremerhaven’s abandoned harbour into one of northern Germany’s most popular visitor attractions.

The Adria fishing cooperative in Tribunj has turned the Croatian tradition of smoked fish and salted sardines into a booming business that has breathed new life into the local economy.

Building on the success of the first fish in Poland to be awarded an EU food quality label, the Polish group Carp Valley has turned a centuries-old carp-farming tradition into a powerful brand that has become a source of both pride and economic benefits to the local community.  

Across Finland’s thousands of lakes, familiar species like roach, bream and small perch are plentiful —but often overlooked. Despite being abundant, affordable and locally caught, they rarely make it onto the dinner table.