Northeastern researchers want to help keep New England seafood from going to China and back
The NSF Seafood Engine in New England is a collaboration of the seafood industry, tech sector, government and research partners.
The longfin squid that ends up on your plate as calamari may have been caught in Rhode Island, but it’s likely traveled to China and back again for processing before being served.
That example is illustrative of what’s known as the “seafood deficit,” a roughly $20 billion trade deficit due to the U.S. importing 80% to 90% of the seafood it consumes. For instance, more than 80% of squid caught in Rhode Island is frozen and shipped to China for processing, then refrozen and imported back to the United States, according to the Westerly Sun.
“It’s not because we don’t have seafood, it’s because we don’t have the capacity to process it,” said Taskin Padir, professor of electrical and computer engineering at Northeastern.
A new “Seafood Engine” backed by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) hopes to address that and other issues by convening research partners, including Northeastern University, the technology sector and fishers to revitalize the New England seafood industry. The project aims to expand domestic seafood processing, grow the industry workforce and utilize technology to break through the supply chain bottlenecks.
“We’re bringing these very diverse sets of people together, and working on a common problem,” said Hanumant Singh, professor of electrical and computer engineering and mechanical and industrial engineering at Northeastern who is participating in the engine. “We want the science, we want the engineering, we want the fisheries people, and we want it to be a win-win-win for all.”
The NSF Seafood Engine in New England is a collaboration of the seafood industry, tech sector, government and research partners across Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. The project, one of the NSF’s Regional Innovation Engines, will initially receive an award of $15 million over two years, with the potential to grow up to $160 million over 10 years as it works to build an internationally competitive technology and innovation cluster.
“NSF Engines investments in critical technologies and future industries will transform America’s innovation infrastructure for decades to come,” said Brian Stone, performing the duties of the NSF director. “The NSF Seafood Engine will leverage cutting-edge resources, including AI, advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, robotics and more to strengthen the New England seafood supply chain, from harvesting to consumer delivery, supporting businesses up and down the coastline.”
Singh said the seafood engine will enhance partnerships between two of New England’s most iconic and important industries: the commercial fisheries and aquaculture (the cultivation of seafood, akin to farming), and academia.
Editor’s Picks
Northeastern researchers will be focused on three main areas.
Padir will be focused on the fisheries supply chain and how to improve products’ journey “from the boat to the plate,” as he put it, continuing and revitalizing his work incorporating robotics into seafood processing and collaborating with the Gulf of Maine Research Institute.
Jonathan Grabowski, Northeastern professor of marine and environmental sciences, will work on educating a workforce for the fisheries, continuing his longtime collaboration with lobstermen along the coast to address various fisheries management and other issues.
Singh will concentrate on incorporating artificial intelligence and robotics into the fisheries industry, for instance, using these tools to support data-driven aquaculture and continuing his longtime work with underwater imaging and underwater vehicles.
At the beginning, the Seafood Engine will support research and development projects that bring together seafood harvesters, academic experts, and tech companies to gain insight from state-of-the-art sensors deployed from fishing vessels and aquaculture farms, according to an announcement from the NSF. It will also establish regional seafood apprenticeship programs to enable greater participation in research and development projects, and provide funding to “blue tech” companies who are bringing products to market, the announcement said.
The engine also highlights Northeastern’s commitment to collaborative research with real-world implications, the researchers said.
“The goal will be to create a solution for our stakeholders as a result of our research,” Padir said. “And finding uses for research is Northeastern’s bread and butter.”
