A total of £7.3m in funding has been made available to help encourage the growth of sustainable fishing communities and develop sustainable solutions for challenges faced by the industry in six English counties.
The work, funded through the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) Axis 4 scheme is being carried out by fisheries local action groups (FLAGS) set up in North and West Cumbria, North Norfolk, the East Rising of Yorkshire, Hastings, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly and North Devon.
The funds are being made available through the EFF (£3.9m) and through the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) (£3.4m).
The FLAGs will use the funds to develop local brands and new markets for fish products. The money will also be used to encourage cooperation within the industry and help educate people about fishing and local marine environments.
Alison Thompson, director of corporate support and governance for the MMO, said: "I’m pleased that through this scheme the MMO is providing support to local fishing communities, to develop and implement their own sustainable solutions to the challenges they face.”
Around £38 million investment has been made available in total through the EFF to help the English fishing fleet become more sustainable and profitable.
World Fishing announced a few months ago that the EFF had made £4.2m of funding available to help fragile fishing communities across Scotland.
