Challenges, Opportunities, and Future Directions for Maine Seaweed

Introduction

Seaweed farming is the newest and fastest-growing aquaculture sector in the US. Since the industry is still young, there are specific challenges and opportunities relevant to the seaweed sector that differ from the general challenges and opportunities surrounding aquaculture. With Maine as the current leader in national seaweed production, farmers, researchers, processors, and product developers working with seaweed need to understand these challenges and opportunities. Leveraging this knowledge, the Maine seaweed industry can develop plans to continue shaping innovation around seaweed aquaculture in the US going forward.

A. Changing climate

Among numerous impacts, climate change is causing waters in the Gulf of Maine to warm rapidly which directly affects the environmental suitability of the Maine coast for growing seaweed. The kelp species that are currently farmed in Maine are native, cold water species with optimal temperature ranges between 50° and 62° F. At present, nearshore waters in the Gulf of Maine tend to be between 35° and 40° F from December to May which is when the bulk of farmed seaweed growth happens. It is projected that the Gulf could warm as much as 1° to 7° F on average by 2100. Although this warming may continue to be within the range of the seaweed species we currently grow, intense warming events known as marine heat waves (MHWs) could spike local temperatures above the optimal tolerance ranges of farmed seaweed species. Combined with more frequently occurring MHWs and overall increases in average water temperatures could lead to shortened growing seasons, increased biofouling occurring earlier in the season, heightened risks of disease, and/or issues relating to the natural seaweed reproductive cycles.

In more developed seaweed industries such as Eastern Asia, one of the solutions to growing cold-water species in warmer water has been the development of selective breeding for temperature-tolerant seaweed strains and disease-resistant seaweed strains. While these techniques were originally used to expand the southern range of Saccharina japonica farms in China, they could also be translated to climate resilience in the seaweed aquaculture industry here in Maine.

How seaweed can be used to mitigate cow burps. Video credit: World Wildlife Fund.

C. Establishing Seaweed Markets

One factor that can complicate the business of seaweed farming is finding and creating competitive markets to sell Maine seaweed products. Many of the East Asian markets where seaweed products are already well established are not easily accessible to Maine seaweed companies. The price per pound of seaweed in those markets is low and Maine companies may struggle to compete and remain profitable. Similarly, many existing US products that contain seaweed rely on imported seaweeds to keep their prices reasonable for US consumers. The greatest potential for Maine seaweed lies in value-added food products for human consumption and other high-value markets like pharmaceuticals, animal feed, and cosmetics.

Finding or creating a market niche within these parameters requires attention to consumer needs/wants as well as creativity with marketing strategies. Some success has been found by Maine seaweed companies through the creation of entirely new seaweed products that appeal to a broad American palette. Consider Kelp Krunch™ bars from Maine Coast Sea Vegetables, Sea-Chi™ from Atlantic Sea Farms, and Seaweedish Meatballs from North Coast Seafood– all products designed to bring seaweed into American diets in novel ways.

On the marketing side of things, some strategies that Maine seaweed companies use include capitalizing on the Maine seafood branding that centers on a clean environment, good jobs, and high-quality, healthy food. By focusing on the benefits of their seaweed products beyond just the taste, seaweed companies can attain price points for their products that make seaweed farming economically viable for Maine businesses.