Norway is the world’s largest salmon producer, with a global production share of approximately 50% (Norges Sjømatråd, 2023). A large market share is combined with a high level of innovation related to technology development and production (Bergesen and Tveteras, 2019, Iversen et al., 2020). The industry aims to provide ‘the world’s most efficient and environmentally friendly industrial protein production’. Recent strategies and roadmaps have identified sustainability as a prerequisite for further development of Norway’s aquaculture sector (Tveteras et al., 2020). In this effort, addressing sustainability issues, especially salmon lice and escaped fish, is important for the industry (Norsk industri, 2017). In addition, plastic waste treatment has become an issue of increasing concern to the industry, because plastic waste from aquaculture activities is a major social problem (Damman et al., 2022), not only in Na prestigious but also globally (World Aquaculture Association, 2020).

Currently, plastic equipment makes up the majority of fish farms in Norway. Aquaculture supplies manufacturers use many different types of plastic to produce, such as flotation tubes, feed tubes, ropes and moving rafts. Complete solution providers have contracts with material suppliers and create such solutions for fish farmers, both in Norway and abroad. The resin for these components comes from different raw material suppliers.

In addition to contributing to ocean plastic pollution through their use, net cages (for salmon farming) used in fish farming also become a significant waste problem when they are brought ashore and thrown away. cancel. The Norwegian regulatory framework requires fish farmers to replace certain parts (e.g. ropes) in fish farms every 3-5 years. Norwegian fish farmers annually discard large amounts of plastic equipment due to wear and tear and upgrade to larger mesh cages. The industry generates about 25,000 tons of plastic waste each year (MEPEX, 2018), but it is difficult to estimate the exact volume. This is in addition to the plastic waste that industry already generates and is currently creating a waste problem on land or in landfills.

Fish nets are plastic waste that causes many difficulties for aquatic creatures when thrown carelessly

Previous studies have shown that discarded plastic components end up in landfills or are used for energy recovery, or are simply left untreated and remain where they were placed. shore, as the market for recycled plastics from aquaculture in Norway is almost non-existent, with a lack of willingness to pay more for recycled materials. Although higher prices for recycled plastics may be detrimental, some manufacturers expect that their customers will be willing to pay a higher price for recycled materials, as these materials contribute to improving the environment. of the production system. Additionally, actors expect that recycled plastic will be competitively priced with virgin plastic at some point and that virgin plastic will become even more expensive in the future.

Despite an unwillingness to pay more for recycled plastics and a lack of regulatory pressure for the use of recycled plastics in Norway, the willingness to use recycled materials is increasing. At the same time, a number of regulations related to the treatment of waste at the end of the product life cycle are being developed, such as extended producer responsibility (EPR) for plastic equipment used in the field of fishing and aquaculture (Miljødirektoratet, 2023). While legal requirements regarding the classification of waste equipment are lacking, the culture of the Norwegian aquaculture industry shows a growing awareness of the value of resources and a growing willingness to be sustainable, including when it comes to plastic-related issues.

While most plastic equipment discarded in aquaculture in Norway is used for energy recovery or landfilling, a number of recycling initiatives have been developed in recent years. Waste plastic equipment recycling agents collect directly from fish farmers or through waste treatment companies. After recycling and pellet production, recycled plastic pellets are sold to suppliers of materials or products in the aquaculture industry and to other value chains for application in other industries.

Therefore, the lifespan of some plastic products and supplies does not end linearly but continues after the ‘end of life’. However, when data was collected, sending plastic devices for recycling was an exception rather than a rule, with only two actors in Norway recycling devices made of post-consumer rigid plastic (honey polyethylene). altitude, HDPE). One of the existing recycling initiatives (hereinafter referred to as Recycling Initiative 1) is from a recycling company founded in 2017, originating from a waste disposal company founded in 2017. 2008 (Recycler 1 in Figure 1).

Recycling companies play an important role in supporting the recycling of plastics from Norway’s aquaculture industry. Established as a subsidiary in 2017, the recycling company installed a granulation line and began recycling operations. The granulation line turns waste plastic equipment from aquaculture components such as walkways, fish cages and feeding pipes into high-quality plastic granules that can be used as input for new products. The recycling company sells its granules to actors in different industries (furniture, construction and aquaculture). Both the company and the waste disposal company have long been subsidiaries of the same parent company and have common headquarters. They also share administrative services and cooperate closely in research and development.

Figure 1. Actors in the traditional value chain of plastics from Norwegian aquaculture.

Green arrows show recycled grain streams or products made from recycled grains. The red arrow shows the end of the linear life cycle available for the discarded plastic device. Black arrows indicate the flow of hard plastic or parts made of hard plastic. The green section is recycling plastic devices. Waste collection and recycling actors are represented by rectangles and traditional companies in the value chain are represented by circles.

A component supplier (Recycler 2 in Figure 2) in northern Norway is behind the second recycling initiative (hereinafter referred to as Recycling Initiative 2). This supplier has established a recycling solution for its devices. This solution collects (directly or through local waste disposal companies) from local customers, local fish farmers, and then mechanically recycles and uses the recycled material in Other products enter the external value chain. The company recently (after 2020) began researching prototypes of aquaculture products made from recycled seeds.

Figure 2. Recycling initiatives in the plastic supplies value chain in Norway

Additionally, with millions of dollars in funding from the Norwegian Research Council and Innovation Norway, Oceanize has turned plastic waste from the marine industry into quality raw materials for new products for the marine industry. Recycling group Oceanize has invested millions of dollars in recent years to turn Norwegian plastic waste into high-value raw materials for Norwegian plastics manufacturers.

More and more products for the aquaculture industry are made from waste that the industry itself has delivered to Oceanize for recycling. Oceanize is working with a number of suppliers to increase the use of recycled plastics in the marine industry. Oceanize granules have been used on the walkways of fish farms in Norway. The ongoing multi-stakeholder collaboration aims to manufacture the entire cage from recycled plastic to the government’s very strict structural and durability requirements. This business is working to re-certify and reuse the 5-6,000 tons of rope that the aquaculture industry buys every year, the rope will eventually have to be discarded. They are currently investing NOK 45 million in a third granulation line designed specifically for rope. The Norwegian Innovation Fund is supporting the further journey towards increased plastic recycling in the marine and aquaculture industries with another NOK 15 million, so that businesses like Oceanize can increase their granulation capacity by 80% to about 9,000 tons per year.