Fishing industry by-products: further applications in food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries

The agro-food industries, including the fishing industry, annually produce large quantities of by-products, whose valuation is still minimal or practical null. Currently, it is known that only a small part is reused for direct animals feeding or for composting. Considering that these by-products contain important levels of nutrients and bioactive compounds, some alternative ways of using by-products from the fishing industry are mentioned, namely for pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. Nevertheless, the importance of sustainability must be taken in consideration, once it is an overly complex concept that involves economic and social development, without causing major damage to the environment. Biotechnology advances for marine by-products conversion into products of interest are numerous. Despite this, the fish sector is facing several issues such as wild fish stocks reduction while, at the same time, aquaculture rises, augmentation of the importations on a global market, and consumers behaviors. All those influent parameters affect and complicate the definition of an upgrading strategy for the by-products as they directly depend to the raw material processed. In view of the importance that the fishing industry has at international level, this work has attempted to characterize and enhance the by-products generated by this activity, through a detailed description of the nutritional, chemical and biological properties presented in fisheries waste, which can benefit, in the near future, the food, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.