Success stories

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.

Portugal-based company SeaForester is restoring Europe’s lost kelp forests using a simple, scalable method: it grows kelp seedlings on small stones in land-based nurseries, then deploys them from fishing boats. This innovative approach facilitates large-scale regeneration of marine habitats.

Technologies deployed in underwater missions are essential to a range of strategic blue economy sectors, including offshore renewable energy, aquaculture, marine biodiversity conservation and underwater cultural heritage.

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.

Romanian start-up Recycllux is using artificial intelligence (AI) to help communities detect, collect and recycle marine plastic waste. With support from BlueInvest, the company raised €375,000 in 2025 and is now expanding its innovative cleanup model across the Mediterranean.

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.

The Arctic Ocean is changing fast as warming drives ice loss and pushes sub-Arctic fish north, opening up potential fishing opportunities. In 2021, an international agreement set a 16-year moratorium on fishing to collect more information about its sustainability.