SAIC, the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre has secured UK£1.4 million in annual funding from Crown Estate Scotland, administered by the Scottish Government Marine Directorate, for a minimum of five years. The funding will support its continued role in driving innovation in aquaculture through collaborative research and development projects.
As part of wider changes, the organisation will relocate to the Life Sciences Innovation Centre at the Inverness Campus, within Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s area of the site. It will also be renamed the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Cluster and will become fully independent from its former host, the University of Stirling.
The move positions the cluster at the centre of Scotland’s aquaculture sector and enables it to directly fund companies for the first time. This is expected to increase engagement with SMEs and strengthen support across the industry, including shellfish, seaweed and other species. A new stakeholder committee will also be established, bringing together representatives from across the sector and its supply chain to help guide activities.
In recent years, the organisation’s consortium has expanded to more than 400 members, including producers, universities, technology firms and retailers, reflecting growing participation in R&D initiatives. Sarah Riddle, who has led the organisation since joining in 2020, said the first funding call under the new structure is expected to be issued shortly.
Riddle described the development as a new phase for the organisation, while maintaining its existing team and mission to support sustainable aquaculture growth through applied, high-quality research.
Alison Hutchins, producer engagement director at the Aquaculture Stewardship Council, said the changes mark an important step for Scotland’s aquaculture sector. She noted that long-term, stable funding is essential to support improvements in environmental performance and responsible farming practices, and added that the ability to directly fund companies could create a more flexible and inclusive innovation environment.
