On September 28th, the General assembly elected Terje E. Martinussen as new chairman of the board of SFI Dsolve. He succeeds Isabelle Sande in this role.
Through the election of Martinussen, SFI Dsolve has gained a chairman with solid knowledge and experience from seafood industry and research. Terje E. Martinussen graduated from the Norwegian College of Fishery Science in 1983, and for several years has held key positions within the fishery sector both in Norway and abroad. He has a varied background within the industry - from fisher on trawlers and coastal vessels and working in the processing industry, to researcher at UiT and Fiskeriforskning (now Nofima) with emphasis on fishery economics, business structure and regulatory means. As an assistant resident representative to Norad in New Delhi, India, he has also been responsible for the bilateral cooperation between India and Norway in the fisheries sector for several years. He has also worked six years at the Norwegian Fisheries’ Association, of which two years as managing director. From 2001 he worked in The Norwegian Seafood Council, first as director of the overseas offices, then as director in Hamburg, Germany for the German, and Poland market, and from 2006 to 2016 as CEO. From 2018 to 2022, Terje E. Martinussen was head of department for the Norwegian College of Fishery Science at UiT – The Arctic University of Norway.
Martinussen has followed the SFI Dsolve from the very beginning, and is looking forward to contribute in the role as chairman.
- SFI Dsolve is important and will hopefully contribute to solving problems related to the use of plastic in fishing gear and equipment in fishery and aquaculture industry. If Dsolve manages to develop biodegradable fibres that can replace today's plastic fibres, we will undoubtedly be able to contribute to reducing some of the environmental impact of today's fishery and aquaculture. Interesting and relevant issues are being addressed in the SFI and I would like, now that I have the time and opportunity, to contribute to this work in the role as chairman.
The new chairman points out that development work takes time and is resource-intensive, but he both hopes and believes that the SFI will form the basis for knowledge, innovation, and industrial development for the partners in the programme.
- I hope it will be possible to fulfill the programme's objectives so that researchers and industry will have the opportunity to carry out development work throughout the planned program period.