“A hamburger or a sausage are products that the consumer, in general, consumes in large quantities and we want him to consume the fish that is not consumed, suggesting a format that is known to the consumer”, Filipa Pinto Gomes told Lusa agency, one of the researchers of the project, stressing that the purpose is also “to win over consumers who have the stigma of not eating fish”.

Through the “ProReMar” project, vegetarian hamburgers are being developed, made from seaweed, composed of around 45% and 60%, respectively, of fish.

“We are talking about seaweeds, which are products that are on the rise in the market, but which are not yet widely used as ingredients, and also fish with no commercial value or low commercial value for fishermen”, he explains.

Food innovation boosts the economy and values ​​these underused or low commercial value resources.

“Often, not consuming fish of low commercial value is related to a culture like the one that exists for horse mackerel, which is very dry and, therefore, is not consumed, but is captured a lot and must be disposed of for consumption” , maintains the specialist with a degree in food engineering and a doctorate in environmental engineering.

In addition, these marine resources, such as horse mackerel or marine macroalgae, have high nutritional value, as they are rich in bioactive compounds and mineral elements.

The ultimate goal is for the products to be produced and marketed by the food industry.