Funding schemes for the UK seafood industry

Most of the funding and grant schemes on this page are not administered by Seafish and we have not included every scheme available. For more funding information, contact the regional managers listed below. 

Funding from Seafish 

We can offer some funding for workers and businesses in the seafood industry to do a variety of training courses.

For more information about onshore training courses, visit our onshore training webpage.

For more information about training courses for the fishing industry, visit our offshore training webpage. 

UK-wide funding from governments and bodies

UK Seafood Fund

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has given £100 million to a UK-wide funding scheme called the UK Seafood Fund.  

This fund is in place to support the UK fisheries and seafood industries and covers four areas: 

• Science and Innovation 
• Infrastructure 
• Skills and Training
• Export support

Science and Innovation scheme
Under the Science and Innovation fund, there are two programmes which share a fund of £24m. These programmes are the Seafood Innovation Fund (SIF) and the Fisheries Industry Science Partnerships (FISP).

Relevant to: It will primarily fund large-scale strategic projects with a broad geographical (in some cases trans-national) scope and with multiple beneficiaries. All funding is competitive and has a match funding requirement. 

Organisation responsible: SIF is controlled by the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and FISP is controlled by Defra. 

Follow the links below for more information and to apply:

Infrastructure scheme
At least £65 million in grant funding is available through the infrastructure scheme. The scheme funds projects that build capacity across the UK fishing sector supply chain. 

Relevant to: Any business and organisation looking to invest in ports, processing or aquaculture infrastructure. Round 3 is open until October 2023 and is focused on fleet modernisation through engine replacements. 

Organisation responsible: Defra

Follow the link below for more information and to apply:

Skills and training scheme
Up to £10 million is available for skills and training in the sector to attract new recruits and improve workforce retention.

Relevant to: Any business or organisation looking to invest in new training to address skills gaps and support innovation or to improve existing courses. Round 2 opened for applications in January 2023 and is focused on modernising and building training centres. The deadline has been extended until 19 May 2023.

Organisation responsible: Defra

Follow the links below for information and details on how to apply:

Zero Emission Vessels and Infrastructure (ZEVI) fund

A £77m fund from the Department of Transport to help decarbonise the UK's maritime sector. This is a match funding research and development scheme. 

Relevant to: Fishing associations, operators and groups. Examples of technology include battery electric vessels, shoreside electrical power and running on low carbon fuels like hydrogen or ammonia.

Organisation responsible: Department for Transport/UK SHORE

Follow the link below for information and how to apply on the Government website:

England-specific Funding 

Fisheries and Seafood Scheme (FaSS) 

The Marine Management Organisation (MMO) administers the Fisheries and Seafood Scheme with funding available up to April 2025.

The scheme aims to deliver investment to safeguard the long-term sustainability, resilience and prosperity of the seafood sector across England.

It offers financial assistance for projects that support the development of the catching, processing and aquaculture sectors, and for projects that enhance the marine environment. 

Relevant to: Organisations and vessels registered in England.

Organisation responsible: Marine Management Organisation

More information: Further information is available on the FaSS website and the MMO website.

Scotland-specific Funding 

Marine Fund Scotland (MFS) 

The Marine Fund Scotland (MFS) is administered by Marine Scotland.  The 2022-2023 scheme closed in November 2022. We will update this page when any future MFS schemes open. 

Other funds available

For more information on other funds available in Scotland, get in touch with:

Northern Ireland-specific Funding

Maritime Fisheries Fund NI 

For marine businesses in Northern Ireland, there is a £14 million fund called Maritime Fisheries Fund (NI) (MFF(NI)). This is controlled by the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA).  

This fund offers grants for projects in Northern Ireland and is split between: 

• Investment on board Fishing Vessels. 
• Fishing Vessel Energy Improvements and Re-engining. 
• Aquaculture, Processing and Marketing. 
• Investments to Shore Based Facilities. 
• Partnership, Information Sharing, Advisory Services, Job Creation and Training.

The MFF funding programme for 2022/23 has now closed. We will update this page when future funds open.

More information: Follow this link to the MFF(NI) website. Follow this link to the DAERA website.

Other funds available

For more information on other funds available in Northern Ireland, get in touch with: 

Wales-specific Funding 

The European Maritime Fisheries Fund (EMFF)

Wales’ fishing community is being invited to submit applications to a £1m fund to primarily help mitigate the ongoing impact Covid is having on the industry and adapt to the rapidly changing market conditions for seafood products.

The deadline for applications to Rural Payments Wales is 25 March 2023.

More information: Details of the European Maritime Fisheries Fund (EMFF) programme and scheme guidance can be found on the Welsh Government website at European Maritime and Fisheries Fund.

The long term EMFF replacement scheme is currently being developed and is expected to be available later this year. 

Other funds available

For more information on other funds available in Northern Ireland, get in touch with: