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The introduction of IoT technologies in industrial settings is changing the way manufacturing companies perceive their production processes, allowing for more accurate monitoring of production-related parameters. Due to the introduction of IoT technologies and associated enhancements in terms of data acquisition, processing, and availability, it becomes possible for manufacturing companies to tackle complex issues, such as the efficiency of production. In this paper, the development of an Industrial IoT solution targeting the fish canning industrial sector is described, as an approach to identify and monitor raw input material losses as well as water and energy waste, an endemic issue of the sector, promoting an increased efficiency in the production processes. This paper mainly focuses on the description of the implementation of the proposed IoT technologies for monitoring waste and loss, and its deployment in three distinct environments, including at a fish canning manufacturing company. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Galicia, the leading region in Europe in the manufacture of canned fish. The governance of the sector is characterized by two main actors, the regional government of Galicia and the National Association of Fish and Seafood Cannery Manufacturers, and the multiannual strategic plans of the sector. During the period of validity of only two existing strategic plans, economic crisis affected the region severely. However, the canning sector maintained, and even improved, its performance at the aggregate level. The aim of this article is to analyze the degree of incidence of the strategic plans in the resilience shown by the sector during the crisis and whether this positive trend is shared across all segments of Galician canned industry. The methodology used is based on the analysis of the profitability of the sample of 64 Galician canning companies, by company size (very large, large, medium and small) and over a period of eight years (2011–2018). The results show a greater strength in the financial structure of the very large and large companies compared to the medium and small ones, for which compliance with the objectives of the strategic plans is lower. In conclusion, a trend of consolidation of the leadership of very large companies can be observed. This fact is evidenced by a doubling of turnover, investment in fixed assets and employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a global framework of growing concern for food security and environmental protection, the selection of food products with higher protein content and lower environmental impact is a challenge. To assess the reliability of different strategies along the food supply chain, a measure of food cost through the environmental impact-protein content binomial is necessary. This study proposes a standardized method to calculate the Green Protein Footprint (GPF) index, a method that assesses both the environmental impact of a food product and its protein content provided to consumers. Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was used to calculate the environmental impact of the selected food products, and a Life Cycle Protein Assessment (LCPA) was performed by accounting for the protein content along the supply chain. Although the GPF can be applied to all food chain products, this paper is focused on European anchovy-based products for indirect human consumption (fishmeal) and for direct human consumption (fresh, salted and canned anchovies). Moreover, the circular economy concept was applied considering the valorization of the anchovy residues generated during the canning process. These residues were used to produce fishmeal, which was employed in bass aquaculture. Hence, humans are finally consuming fish protein from the residues, closing the loop of the original product life cycle. More elaborated, multi-ingredient food products (salted and canned anchovy products), presented higher GPF values due to higher environmental impacts. Furthermore, the increase of food loss throughout their life cycle caused a decrease in the protein content. Regarding salted and canned products, the packaging was the main hotspot. The influence of the packaging was evaluated using the GPF, reaffirming that plastic was the best alternative. These results highlighted the importance of improving packaging materials in food products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anchovy canning industry is one of the most important economic resources of the Cantabria region in Spain. However, environmental, economic and social problems over the past years have forced companies to apply marketing strategies, develop product diversification, create new products and introduce them in new “green markets”. Launching Cantabrian canned anchovies into more sustainable markets requires measuring the environmental performance using Product Category Rules (PCRs) and Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs). EPDs and PCRS include the environmental profile of a range of similar products, such as all of the available canned anchovy products. The great variety of anchovy canned products depends on three process variables: the origin of the anchovy (Cantabria, Argentina and Chile or Peru), the type of oil (refined olive oil, extra virgin olive oil and sunflower oil) and the packaging (aluminum, tinplate, glass and plastic). This work aims to assess the environmental impact from cradle to grave of canned anchovies in oil using the life cycle assessment methodology (LCA). Moreover, the paper evaluates the influence of the above-mentioned three product variables in the LCA results. The results show that out of all of the alternatives, Chilean and Peruvian anchovies have the highest environmental burdens due to the transportation by ship. The production of anchovies in sunflower oil is a less environmentally friendly oil process due to the low yield per hectare of sunflower cultivation. Finally, the use of aluminum as the packaging material has the largest environmental impact out of almost all of the impact categories. Moreover, because the LCA results can be significantly affected by the allocation procedure, a sensitivity analysis comparing system expansion, mass and economic allocation is performed. In this case, the system expansion approach presents the highest environmental impacts followed by the mass allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Spain is the first fish and seafood canning producer country in the European Union. Within Spain, the Galician (North-western Spain) canning enterprises dominate the market, being tuna the main species processed in the Spanish fish and seafood canning industries. In this context, this paper analyzes a Galician fish and seafood canning enterprise from the point of view of sustainability. To this end, an existing methodology combining Material and Energy Flow Analysis and Best Available Techniques analysis was enhanced, including for the first time the Exergy Analysis to detect the Improvable Flows of the process and to propose techniques that can minimize the environmental effects of these flows. The final methodology has been applied to a tuna canning process, resulting in the identification of 16 improvable flows, and the selection through best available techniques analysis of 14 alternatives to enhance the process. The application of the methodology developed in this work to an industrial system provides a way to detect material, energy or exergy improvable flows in a process, allowing industrial technicians into selecting the more suitable modifications to implement in their processes, in order to get its optimal alternative. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: European pilchard or sardines (Sardina pilchardus) are an attractive raw material to extract from Iberian waters, since they constitute a cheap source of protein and they are a popular product among consumers. This has led to a wide range of final products available for consumers to purchase based on this single raw material. Therefore, this study presents a cross-product environmental assessment using life cycle assessment of three different final products based on sardine landings: canned sardines, fresh sardines and European hake caught by using sardine as bait. In addition, the products were followed throughout their entire life cycle, considering different cooking methods for each final product. Results showed high variability in environmental impacts, not only between the three final products, but also when one single product was cooked in different ways, highlighting the importance that the consumption phase and other post-landing stages may have on the final environmental profile of seafood. Results are then analysed regarding relevant limitations and uncertainties, as well as in terms of the consumer and policy implications. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The environmental assessment of the processing and consumption of mussels of the species Mytilus galloprovincialis was carried out for both fresh and canned mussels. For this purpose, the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) was considered. Inventories for mussel purification in dispatch centres and mussel transformation in canning factories were performed, along with those for household consumption of fresh and canned mussels. Environmental characterization results were computed for different impact categories, including abiotic depletion, global warming, ecotoxicity, human toxicity, acidification, ozone layer depletion, photochemical oxidant formation and eutrophication. As a whole, the environmental hot spots for fresh mussel processing included electricity and chlorine gas production, as well as water discharge in dispatch centres. Similarly, the environmental hot spots for canned mussel processing comprised electricity production, can production and transport, oil production, and fuel oil production. Finally, the implementation of the previous mussel culture stage into the LCA of mussel processing and consumption showed the relevant role of the mussel culture system when assessing the potential environmental impacts of mussel-based products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Mussels as a commercial product involve a range of activities which can be included within four different sub-sectors: culture, dispatch centres, canning factories and, finally, cooking plants. This paper deals with the environmental evaluation of the whole mussel sector from a Life Cycle Assessment approach. The use of exhaustive inventories led to the subsequent environmental characterization of the mussel sector in terms of the contribution observed for each of the sub-sectors. In this sense, the sub-sector associated with dispatch centres presented the largest contributions to the potential environmental impacts, clearly ahead of mussel farming. Furthermore, the sub-sectors of mussel cooking plants and canning factories showed a much lower contribution to the potential environmental impacts. Several improvement potentials were identified from the characterization results, stressing the minimization of the electric energy consumption in dispatch centres. A comparative LCA was performed in order to contrast the environmental performance of the three main commercial mussel products: fresh mussels, canned mussels and frozen mussels. The analysis showed that fresh mussels have the least favourable environmental profile. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This study aimed to evaluate the effects of alternative feed ingredients: Insect meal (DI) using non-defatted meal obtained from Acheta domesticus , Microalgae (DM) using a mix of four marine microalgae ((Nannochloropsis gaditana , Tisochrysis lutea , Rhodomonas lens , Isochrysis galbana), Protein and oil from water of tuna canning process (DP&L) and a Mixture (DMix) of the three ingredients, on the growth, feed utilisation, digestibility and composition of meagre juveniles, and the results obtained were compared with a feed similar to a commercial feed used as a control (DC). Results show that the formulated alternative feeds had different effects on fish growth. DMix have a similar growth performance than the control, whereas the other treatments (DI, DM and DP&L) showed a lower final weight. Hepatosomatic and viscerosomatic indices did not show differences among the treatments. Muscle protein content was higher for fish fed with DMix group whereas lipids were significantly higher in DI. In the case of the liver, protein was higher in the liver of fish fed with DI, DM and DP&L, whereas lipids were higher in fish fed with DI and DM, a result that was confirmed with the results obtained in hepatocyte size and lipid accumulation. The nutritional value of the meagre muscle at the end of the study showed that meagre fed with DM and DI diets contained a significantly higher content of monounsaturated and n-6 PUFA, whereas fish from the groups fed with DP&L and DMix had a significantly higher content of DHA and n-3 PUFA with the liver showing similar results. In view of the results obtained, the ingredients assayed in this study might be used as alternative sources of protein and lipids in aquafeeds since no negative effects were detected neither on fish growth, muscle composition or final nutritional value, except in the case of the diet with microalgae (DM), which inclusion rate in the feed must be adjusted and needs more research. • Acheta domesticus meal, proteins and lipids from tuna canning factories and a mix of marine microalgae included in a feed improve growth, feed efficiency and final quality of meagre. • These new alternative ingredients are sustainable as they present a lower Fish In: Fish Out ratio than the control diet used in the study. • Final fillet quality of meagre is similar to that obtained using a commercial feed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]