Established in 1929 and officially restructured as the Fisheries Research Institute (FRI), Ministry of Agriculture in 2023, the FRI is Taiwan's premier government institution for fisheries research and technology extension. Headquartered in Keelung, its core operations are driven by four primary divisions—Technical Services, Marine Fisheries, Aquaculture, and Seafood Technology. To ensure comprehensive nationwide coverage, the institute also operates six specialized regional research centers across Taiwan, focusing on freshwater, mariculture, and coastal to offshore fisheries biology.
The Institute is supported by robust research infrastructure, including a fleet of three dedicated vessels (Fisheries Researcher I, II, and Hai-An). Furthermore, it oversees strategic aquatic germplasm banks in Changhua (Lukang), Penghu (Qingwan), and Taitung (Zhiben), while managing the nation’s first field isolation facility for genetically modified aquatic organisms in Tainan (Qigu). Together, these facilities solidify the FRI's pivotal role in advancing Taiwan's sustainable aquaculture and marine biotechnology.