Bermeo Tuna and Bilbao Higher School of Hospitality join forces to promote sustainable tuna and albacore gastronomy

The collaboration will connect training, the value chain and the region to promote young talent, strengthen local hospitality and showcase Bermeo’s culinary heritage.

Bermeo, 16 October 2026.– The Bermeo Tuna World Capital Association (Bermeo Tuna) and Bilbao Higher School of Hospitality (ESHBI), located in Artxanda (Bilbao), have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a long-term strategic partnership around the sustainable gastronomy of tuna and albacore.

The agreement is based on a shared conviction: gastronomy makes it possible to connect a product with its origins, the people who make it possible, and the responsibility to preserve the sea and maritime culture for future generations. Both organisations want to bring this vision into the training of future professionals, the hospitality sector and the wider public, making cooking a tool for knowledge, territorial identity and responsible consumption.

The partnership combines the strengths of both organisations. Bermeo Tuna will contribute content and links with the different stages of the value chain, from the fishing sector and processing industry to science and knowledge. The school will contribute its educational, technical and culinary expertise, bringing this reality closer to students and teaching staff.

One of the main areas of collaboration will be training chefs who understand the product before cooking it. The partnership will promote knowledge of its origins, the different fishing and processing methods, and its culinary uses, together with an understanding of sustainability that enables future professionals to act as responsible advocates.

The collaboration will also seek to strengthen the hospitality sector’s role as an ambassador for the region. With particular attention to Bermeo and Urdaibai, and a broader focus on Bizkaia and the Basque Country, both organisations will promote knowledge and appropriate use of albacore and tuna, whether fresh, canned, frozen or deep-frozen, as well as the ability to communicate their value at the bar and at the table.

The recovery and promotion of culinary heritage will be another central area of work. The partnership will foster the sharing of knowledge passed down by families, historic hospitality businesses and the maritime community, connecting traditional tuna and albacore recipes with contemporary interpretations and promoting them as living gastronomic heritage.

Recognising and supporting young talent, and exploring new avenues for innovation, complete this framework for collaboration. The aim is to develop professionals who respect the product, make the most of it and maintain a strong connection with the region, while exploring new production methods and products that respond to consumers’ emerging needs through sustainability, food technology and health.

Through this partnership, Bermeo Tuna and Bilbao Higher School of Hospitality undertake to build a stable space for training, knowledge and innovation, based on complementary roles and institutional neutrality. From Bermeo, and connected with Bizkaia and the Basque Country, the collaboration aims to strengthen the gastronomic identity linked to the sea and raise its international profile.

About Bermeo Tuna

The Bermeo Tuna World Capital Association promotes a sustainable model for the tuna value chain based on cross-sector collaboration, ties to the region and an international outlook. Its work fosters partnerships that connect products, knowledge and people, in line with the International Declaration for Tuna Sustainability and the 2030 Agenda.

About Bilbao Higher School of Hospitality

Bilbao Higher School of Hospitality (ESHBI), located in Artxanda, is a training centre that combines technical and culinary learning with the transmission of values and responsible experimentation. As part of this partnership, it contributes its educational expertise to train professionals who can understand where products come from, appreciate their connection to the region and act as advocates for sustainable gastronomy.

Press contact:

Leire Egiarte Amezaga

legiarte@bermeotuna.org – 671 700 474