An initiative of the KSTP and the Cool Blue Baltic project – a city event offered an opportunity to get to know the flavours of ocean farmed seafood products

The festival is titled “Savos bangos. Tvarios ateities kūrėjų laboratorija”, the Klaipėda Science and Technology Park team invited guests to sample snacks made from seaweed and educated them about the potential applications of seafood cultivated in innovative ocean farms in the food industry. Participants were informed about the positive impact of these activities in restoring damaged aquaculture and ecosystems. It is important to note that projects such as Cool Blue Baltic, of which Klaipėda Science and Technology Park is a partner, have a clear track record of delivering results. The products already developed and the operational processes already in place contribute directly to sustainability and ecology. June 21st. the event, initiated by the Lithuanian Maritime Museum and Ignitis Renewables, took place at Danė Square in Klaipėda. The event’s objective was to create a more sustainable tomorrow and promote ecological awareness.

Marine farms – restoring ecosystems

The Baltic Sea is a unique and dynamic environment. However, it is confronted with a variety of challenges, including biogeochemical changes such as eutrophication, hypoxia, and acidification, as well as extreme weather conditions, urban development, and industrial fishing. The cumulative challenges result in ecosystem fluctuations, and the negative socio-economic factors that have been affecting ecosystems for decades eventually lead to the decline of the traditional coastal economy, rural-urban migration, and a heavy dependence on seasonal tourism. In alignment with the EU’s mission “Restoring our oceans and waters by 2030,” COOL BLUE BALTIC (CBB) aims to implement concrete scenarios for regenerative aquaculture and ecosystem restoration. These scenarios include redirecting fishermen from commercial fishing to ocean regeneration activities, thereby ensuring the effective management of marine protected areas.

“Klaipėda Science and Technology Park” initiated thematic interviews and discussions in order to find solutions for the development of this type of farms under the natural and territorial conditions in Lithuania. Lithuania’s open coastline would be one of the biggest challenges for ocean farming in Lithuania.

Community farms strategically locate their cultivation facilities along the Baltic Sea coast, leveraging its natural resources and infrastructure. A wind farm is planned in the Lithuanian territorial sea, and the project could include compensatory measures to help biogenic reefs and benthic habitats damaged by construction. One such measure could be the cultivation of Baltic Sea mussels, which are naturally adapted to lower salinity conditions and form an important part of the reef habitats. This approach is designed to restore reef bottom habitats that have been damaged by human activities and invasive predators. The mussel beds attached to the Palanga Bridge would also have a wide range of environmental benefits, such as water purification and fish attraction. These are merely a few suggestions that would require more detailed analysis, but there could be many more.

Regenerative farming techniques have the potential to address critical environmental issues in the Baltic Sea, such as warming oceans, overfishing of wild fish stocks, and degraded ecosystems. Despite the fact that crops grown on Lithuanian coasts are not suitable for food, these techniques offer a promising solution. The cultivation of specific species could play a crucial role in enhancing water quality and temperature regulation, facilitating the recovery of fish stocks, and concurrently supporting the growth of small-scale fishing operations within our region.

Educating the community and increasing involvement

To foster understanding of regenerative aquaculture and its potential among the seaside community and its guests, “Klaipėda Science and Technology Park” participated in two events: “Žuvies diena” on May 16 and the festival “Savos bangos. Tvarios ateities kūrėjų laboratorija“. The event demonstrated the viability of marine farming, offering guests the chance to sample products derived from algae cultivated in the Baltic and North Seas. It also featured an introduction to other crops grown in the sea and their potential applications. In addition, educational activities were provided for children and young people.

Official website of the project https://coolbluefuture.org/lt/
Read more about the project https://kmtp.lt/project/cool-blue-baltic/

Tasting at the event “Savos bangos. Tvarios ateities kūrėjų laboratorija” is funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe project COOL BLUE BALTIC (CBB).