The Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC) has secured £1.4 million in annual funding for at least five years and relocated its headquarters from Stirling to Inverness.
The funding will be provided by Crown Estate Scotland and administered by the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate. SAIC has also rebranded as the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Cluster and will operate independently from its former host institution, the University of Stirling.
The organisation has moved to the Life Sciences Innovation Centre at the Inverness Campus, within Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s section of the site.
SAIC said the new structure will allow it to fund companies directly for the first time and broaden its work beyond salmon to include other aquaculture sectors such as shellfish and seaweed.
Since its establishment, SAIC has invested £10.8 million in collaborative research and development projects and attracted £70.6 million in additional funding. The consortium now includes more than 400 members across industry, academia, and the supply chain.
According to the organisation, the first funding call under the new structure is expected to be launched shortly.