The increasing demand of high-quality animal protein by a growing world population has put extreme pressure on livestock products, and in particular, on the aquaculture sector. There is also an increase on the general public awareness of production systems’ environmental sustainability and animal welfare. The IGNITION project aims to gather new knowledge in animal welfare in the context of climate change, while assessing and developing new strategies to improve animal health through non-invasive tools. More info at https://ignition-project.eu/

Non-invasive or minimally invasive techniques for early disease prediction could revolutionise the sector by enabling early interventions, reducing financial loss and enhancing sustainability, animal health, and welfare. By comparing microbiomes of animals reared in optimal versus suboptimal conditions, researchers can identify profiles associated with greater disease resilience.

We are creating an open repository of metagenomic data for economically relevant fish species in Portuguese aquaculture, such as trout, seabass, seabream. By fostering a deeper understanding of the fish microbiome, initMAPAfish has the potential to enhance sustainability, improve animal welfare, and support the development of innovative solutions for the aquaculture industry.