From Innovation to Impact: Strengthening the Resilience of Indonesian Fisheries for a Low-Carbon Economy
New study highlights opportunities to strengthen resilience and reduce emissions in Indonesia’s fisheries sector:
- Analysis identifies cold chain decarbonisation as a high-impact intervention in small-scale fisheries
- Solar-powered ice production could reduce seafood product emissions by up to 27%
- Findings support Indonesia’s transition toward a resilient and low-carbon blue economy
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JAKARTA, INDONESIA - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), together with the International Pole & Line Foundation (IPNLF), convened stakeholders from government, industry, and development partners for the event “From Innovation to Impact: Strengthening the Resilience of Indonesian Fisheries for a Low-Carbon Economy.”
Fisheries is a key contributor to Indonesia’s economy. However, the sector also generates significant carbon emissions due to high energy consumption, particularly from fishing operations and cold chain systems required to maintain product quality and food safety. As global markets increasingly demand low-carbon and sustainable supply chains with stronger ESG compliance and transparency, decarbonisation of the fisheries sector has become increasingly important. Effective decarbonisation requires a clear understanding of emissions hotspots across the fisheries supply chain to identify the most impactful mitigation strategies.
During the event, IPNLF launched of the report The untapped decarbonisation potential of Indonesian small-scale fisheries which examines emissions hotspots across small-scale yellowfin tuna supply chains in Indonesia and identifies practical opportunities to strengthen resilience while advancing decarbonisation efforts. The study highlights the significant role of cold chain infrastructure in seafood supply chain emissions and demonstrates the potential of renewable energy solutions to support more sustainable fisheries operations. According to the analysis, transitioning to solar-powered ice production could reduce the total product carbon footprint by up to 27% in certain fisheries.
The report also provides publicly available, verified carbon footprint data aligned with EU market requirements for Indonesia’s small-scale tuna fisheries, supporting greater supply chain transparency and international market readiness.
The findings indicate that fuel consumption remains the largest source of emissions during fishing operations, accounting for 61–76% of fishery-stage emissions, while ice production can contribute up to 33% in some supply chains. The report identifies vessel efficiency improvements, route optimisation, and renewable-energy-powered cold chain systems as key opportunities for emissions reduction.
The analysis also underscores the importance of robust emissions data for improving market access and supporting sustainability commitments across the seafood sector.
“Remote small-scale fishing communities often encounter overlapping barriers to participating in sustainable market transitions, ranging from constrained access to finance and energy infrastructure to underdeveloped cold chain systems and limited economies of scale,” said Christopher Giordano, Fisheries Project Manager and Cold Chain Expert at IPNLF.
Beyond small-scale fishers, fisheries companies also play an important role in implementing decarbonisation pathways. Nusatuna, one of the project partners, is a strong example. Its life cycle analysis (LCA) shows that the processing stage is the largest source of emissions, followed by fishing activities. Based on these findings and the energy audit conducted, the recommended decarbonisation pathway combines energy efficiency improvements in cooling equipment and refrigerant systems with rooftop solar PV deployment.
“This highlights the importance of data-driven assessments in developing decarbonisation pathways for the fisheries sector. Different companies will require different strategies depending on their business focus, operational scale, geographical location, and infrastructure conditions — whether operating in urban industrial areas or remote coastal communities,” said Emy Aditya, Energy Advisor, GIZ Indonesia/ASEAN.
The event highlighted that there is no one-size-fits-all pathway to decarbonisation. Implementation approaches must be tailored to the operational realities and business models of individual companies and fisheries contexts.
About the International Pole & Line Foundation (IPNLF)
The International Pole & Line Foundation is a global non-profit organisation working to support sustainable one-by-one tuna fisheries, protect marine ecosystems, and improve the livelihoods and rights of socially and environmentally responsible one-by-one tuna fisheries in 33 countries. The traditional fishing techniques used by the fisheries we work with are highly selective, minimising bycatch and environmental impact, while supporting the livelihoods of coastal communities.
IPNLF collaborates with fishers, businesses, and policymakers to implement sustainable practices, enhance supply chain, transparency, and advocate for equitable policies that benefit both people and the planet. IPNLF has 58 members, including the retailers Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's, Whole Foods, Edeka, Migros and Woolworths South Africa.
About GIZ Indonesia & ASEAN
The Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH has been working in Indonesia since 1975. Indonesia has been classed as a middle-income country since 2007. As a member of G20 – the Group of Twenty of the world’s major industrial and emerging economies – Indonesia plays a significant role in the region. Jakarta hosts the Secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). Indonesia is therefore one of the global development partners of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). These are emerging economies that play a crucial role in achieving international development goals.
GIZ is working in Indonesia on behalf of BMZ. With one of the priority areas being energy transition, GIZ is working its way through industry decarbonization, and therefore, to the Indonesian government’s commitment to reach net zero emissions by 2060 or earlier.
