Seafood by-products from canning industry: A review on the environmental assessment of valorisation pathways and future trends

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Seafood canning industries generate large amounts of by-products, including effluents, with high organic and salt contents. Valorisation treatments can transform by-products into valuable products applying a circular approach, however they also entail environmental impacts. This review analysis articles published between 2013 and 2023 on valorisation treatments for the production of value-added products from seafood canning industry by-products. It also verified to which extent the environmental performance of those treatments was considered by gathering information on the application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology that assess impacts comprehensively. A second goal was to investigate the European Union (EU) seafood canning industry to provide data on potential by-products and amounts generated. A total of 18 valorisation treatments and 12 different products were found. Bioactive products represented 61 % of the products and polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and fish protein hydrolysates (FPHs) were the most frequently products obtained. FPHs are, proteins that are broken down into smaller peptides used to improve the functional and nutritional properties of food. PHAs serve as raw materials to replace petroleum-based plastics. A total of eight articles assessed environmental impacts of valorization options, but only six used LCA related with fishmeal production together with uses of by-products as fish oil, fish pâté, energy recovery, lipid extraction and PHAs production. Based on the EU annual production of canned seafood products, it was estimated that 511 k tonnes of by-products could be available. The valorisation of such by-products face challenges as their variability and degradation and, although it is a low-cost raw material, logistics are required to collect them. The environmental impacts, currently assessed of valorisation treatments are not representative of the most promising technologies and therefore it is still difficult to take evidenced-based decisions on the fate of the fish by-products coming from canning industries. • Fish processing generate large amounts of by-products rich in bioactive compounds. • By-products valorisation reduces pollution and creates economic opportunities. • Environmental impacts of valorisation treatments are seldom approached in articles. • FPHs and PHAs are the most frequently obtained value-added bioactive products. • Recovery industrial by-products requires specific logistics and pioneering techniques.