That’s a Wrap on MIIN in Mayo!
Share
Overall Attendees (2 days): 67 of 95
That’s a wrap! Many thanks to all who attended our MIIN in Mayo event on Thursday the 3rd and Friday the 4th of October 2024 in Westport, Mayo.
Networking Evening
MIIN’s Liam Curran, Enterprise Ireland (Top L, Bottom R) with Michael O’Boyle, Mayo County Council (Top R), Damien O’Keefe- Aqualicense & Michael Flynn- Konree Innovations (Bottom L)
On Thursday evening, MIIN attendees were welcomed to the Knockranny House Hotel for a pre-event networking reception. This well attended evening included short introductions by Liam Curran about MIIN and the work we do. As well as an introduction and welcome from Michael O’Boyle from Mayo County Council, who we would like to thank again for attending and introducing marine initiatives taking place in Mayo to our MIIN members.
Blue Bioeconomy Perspectives
Friday morning saw near 30 attendees join us, and the event kicked off with Blue Bioeconomy success stories from 3 companies working in the region. Andrew Darmody, General Manager Operations at Voya Organic Beauty, a luxury organic cosmetics brand from Sligo kicked off session 1. Voya has achieved global recognition from their unique blend of seaweed research and strategic marketing. They create cosmetics using seaweed extracts, while also embracing sustainability by repurposing seaweed waste for packaging.
Andrew Darmody, General Manager Operations at Voya Organic Beauty
Following this, another exciting player in the Irish #bluebioeconomy, Dara Scott Managing Director of Hive Alive took to the stage. Hive Alive are a Galway-based company that is a leader in feed supplements for honeybees. Their innovative antifungal and anti-inflammatory product feature a unique blend of seaweed, scientifically selected to promote honeybee health.
(From L to R): MIIN’s Liam Curran (Enterprise Ireland) with Dara Scott (Hive Alive)
Margaret Rae, CEO of Konree Innovation closed this session with her presentation on the fight against sea lice in salmon farming. Their innovative solution, deployed directly in salmon pens, helps prevent the spread of this pest.
As a high-nutrient food source with low carbon footprint, salmon plays a key role in sustainable diets—and solutions that make #aquaculture more effective and safer is essential for supporting the future of sustainable seafood production.
Margaret Rae (Konree Innovation Ltd)
Session 2
Majbritt Bolton-Warberg, Blue Bioeconomy Programme Manager, Marine Institute
Majbritt Bolton-Warberg, Blue Bioeconomy Programme Manager with the Marine Institute, introduced the next session which included presentations from BIM and Údarás na Gaeltachta about the industry supports and insights they could share on the Ireland’s blue bioeconomy. Majbritt also shared details on the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership funding which is available now. As well as details on the Ocean Knowledge 2030 Strategy and conference which is open now for registrations. And the upcoming Bioeconomy Ireland Week which takes place from the 14th -20th October.
Cliodhna Griffin, BIM and Máire Énniú, Údaras na Gaeltachta
Cliodhna Griffin, Business Development Executive with BIM, presented industry insights and supports available to Blue Bioeconomy companies, as well as some interesting case studies from the region like the Clew Bay Native Oyster Restoration Project. This presentation was followed by Máire Éinniú, Assistant Principal within Údarás na Gaeltachta, who detailed the types of supports available to companies who are looking to develop a service or product in the Blue Bioeconomy, as well as updates on the latest Nua na Mara news about their partnership with University of Galway, Atlantic Technological University and Carna Research Station.
Take a look at some of our speaker slides here:
Dara Scott, Hive Alive: Hive Alive_MIIN in Mayo
Margaret Rae, Konree Innovation: Konree Innovation_MIIN in Mayo
Cliodhna Griffin, BIM: BIM_MIIN in Mayo
Máire Énniú, Údarás na Gaeltachta: Údarás na Gaeltachta_MIIN in Mayo
Industry Tour
The Friday morning talks were followed by a tour of the Marine Institute Newport facilities, which kicked off with insightful presentations from Dr. Russell Poole, Section Manager and from Alan Drumm Senior Lab Analyst. The #MIINinMayo attendees were then treated to a full tour of the facility with expert talks from Marine Institute staff members.
MIIN Industry Tour at the Marine Institute in Furnace, Co. Mayo
Liam Curran (MIIN) said;
“MIIN would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who made our #MIINinMayo event a success. To our speakers, our hosts, our tour guides, and our audience – thank you for joining us. We hope to see you all again at our next event.”
Feedback Survey
MIIN have prepared a post-event feedback survey. These surveys help us to understand what our members would like to see at future MIIN events. We are constantly improving and want your input to help make our next event a bigger success. The survey should take 4 minutes to complete and can be accessed by clicking here. We appreciate your feedback.
Keep up to date with all MIIN news and events by joining our mailing list here. Don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn and X for real-time updates about the network.
If you have any questions or news you would like to share with our marine audience, please contact us on MIIN@bluewisemarine.ie