Abstract | TAPAS is a four-year EU Horizon 2020 collaborative research project, which aims to promote and consolidate the environmental sustainability of the European aquaculture. Aquaculture is the fastest growing food production sector in the world. However, the EU self-sufficiency in terms of seafood is low, with nearly 70% of the seafood consumed being imported. To turn this situation, EU member states prepared national strategies for an ambitious 25% growth by 2020. The TAPAS project will provide scientific research data to support this action. The TAPAS consortium is made up of 15 partner organisations including research institutions, SMEs and regulators from across Europe. The project is implemented through a series of parallel and tightly integrated work packages and uses case studies throughout Europe to investigate, test and validate approaches. The case studies cover a range of production systems including freshwater ponds, re-circulating systems, shellfish farms and marine cages as well as emerging technologies such as Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA). The TAPAS research will look into different aquaculture sectors in both marine and freshwater environments. Aquaculture installations can grow shellfish (mussels, oysters, etc.) and various freshwater and saltwater fish species. TAPAS will analyse the growth of these in cages, tanks and pond systems, as well as long-line systems and pallets. The outcomes will help decrease the licensing time for new and existing developments, enhance the public image of aquaculture and to gain a better understanding of the sustainability of aquaculture in the EU. The following partner organisations are involved in the project: The University of Sterling, Aquabiotech Group, Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), DHI Water Environment Health, Fundación IMDEA Agua, Hellenic Center for Marine Research (HCMR), Marine Institute (Ireland), Network of Aquaculture in Central and Eastern Europe (NACEE), Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML), Wageningen Environmental Research (Alterra), Szent István University (SZIU), University of Murcia, University of Nantes, Water Insight BV |