Oceano Fresco Innovation

It is predicted that food production must double by 2050 to meet the demand from the world’s growing population. A sustainable blue economy will play a central role in alleviating the multiple demands on land resources and in tackling climate change. The sector can contribute by promoting the sustainable use of aquatic and marine resources and by providing an alternative source of protein with less environmental impact.

Direct:

• Creation of 4 new job positions directly related to the research project, beyond the current 23 employees of the company. Furthermore, depending on the results of the research, the company will hire other 6 to 12 people;
• Increase in the production productivity, in which it will be possible to produce more clams using less resources for each Kg produced. The company expects to triple the clam’s production with the same level of resources usage, what they will be able to confirm with tests within the R&D project;
• The investment in research and development (R&D) promotes innovation in the industry, in terms of processes and technology. The project thrives for a greater understanding of clams’ genetics and its main disease, the development of new cultivation technologies but also improved cultivation processes;
• By providing an alternative source of protein, the sustainable cultivation of clams will not only contribute to alleviating the multiple demands on land resources, but also to restoring marine resources and the seas’ biodiversity, by being an alternative to intensive fishing.

Indirect:

• Promotion the local economy, through collaboration with the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA), Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR) and the region’s producers.

Click here to read the article "Can the ocean feed us sustainably?" written by Rodrigo Clímaco, responsible for the clam farm of Oceano Fresco.

The company is focused on sustainable aquaculture of high-value bivalves (European clams), using scientific research and methods, and an innovative approach in the systematic improvement of aquaculture. Funded in 2015 by Bernardo Ferreira de Carvalho, the company's motto is: “we can regenerate nature if we farm and eat better”. The company is led by a Board of five Directors with scientific, financial, and business experience, including launching and scaling up of start-ups. They are supported by a growing Operational Team (43 people) covering R&D, production, and business and several Advisory Board members with world-renowned fish breeding experts.

The company has built a state-of-the-art Biomarine Center, including a hatchery, labs, and offices in central Portugal, as well as a 100-hectare sea farm off the coast of the Algarve region. With these rare and complementary assets, the company will apply advanced selection and breeding methods to native European clam species of high nutritional and market value, which are presently being replaced in the market by their low-value Asian counterparts (low organoleptic value). 

The company is proud to have accomplished the following milestones:

• (2015-16) Conducted a field study in key aquaculture countries that confirmed market potential;
• (2015 onwards) Hired a highly skilled and experienced team covering R&D, production, and business;
• (2015 onwards) Was awarded 3.5€ million in Portuguese and EU grants;
• (2016-17) Completed proof-of-concept projects that confirmed the business model viability;
• (2018) Signed a 25-year land lease concession for the Biomarine center location;
• (2018) Obtained all the required licenses from the authorities to operate the hatchery;
• (2018) Acquired a fully licensed, 30+20-year concession for off-shore farming with 103ha;
• (2018) Established a 5-member BoD combining plant and fish breeding with business experience;
• (2018-2020) Raised 7,5 million euros in seed and A rounds from 2018 to 2020, from institutional and individual investors;
• (2020) Set up the off-shore farm physical infrastructure in the sea;
• (2020) Built a state-of-the-art Biomarine center, including a hatchery, labs, and offices;
• (2020) Bought a 12-meter boat, that is based in the company's harbor in Lagos;
• (2021) 2,5 million clam seeds ready to be sent to the off-shore farm in Algarve;
• (2021) Clams growing in the sea, in the company's offshore farm, in Algarve.
• (2022) Launch of the new boat Oceano Fresco I and construction of the Packaging and Dispatch center. 
• (2023) Strengthen investment in R&D and innovation, including key the projects: Atlanticlam and Blue Bioeconomy Pact 
• (2024) Recognised as the “EU Blue Champion” by the European Investment Bank and the European Commission in the context of the EU missions to Restore our Ocean and Waters and closed Investment series by Indico Capital Partners, BPF, BlueCrow and AquaSpark. 
• (2025) First-ever harvest and sales of adult flat oysters