Seaweed Farming Makes A Comeback

Go South Beach, young man…

here was a time when seaweed was a key ingredient in farming around here, an abundant winter fertiliser that was gathered up just beside The Men’s.

As you start that South Beach path, you can still see the numbers on the wall, allotted collection points for the latest Irish Sea crop.

As explained by the late, great Danny Hatton here, who attended such gatherings with his father way back when.

And now, over 70 years later, it looks like seaweed may start playing a significant part in farming once again, with the newly-formed Irish Seaweed Association, which was launched this weekend in Trinity College Dublin.

Here’s the official spiel…

Inspired by the highly successful Norwegian Seaweed Association model, the Irish Seaweed Association aims to unite industry stakeholders, policymakers, and researchers to unlock the potential of seaweed farming as a nature-positive, economically viable, and community-driven sector.

Hosted by the Centre for Social Innovation at Trinity Business School and Trinity’s School of Natural Sciences, the Irish Seaweed Association is a spin out from the EU Horizon-funded research project C-FAARER. It is supported by a strong network of partners including Trinity College Dublin, the Norwegian Seaweed Association, Nofima, Sea Going Green, Redrose Developments, and Horizon Nua.

“The global seaweed industry is projected to reach €22 billion by 2028, driven by the increasing demand for sustainable food and a multitude of other algae-based products that form a key pillar of the bioeconomy. With over 7,500km of coastline, Ireland is uniquely positioned to become a leader in regenerative ocean farming, helping to restore marine ecosystems, and supporting coastal livelihoods,” explained Gareth Murphy, PM at Óir Na Farraige part of Simply Blue Group and Chair of the Irish Seaweed Association.

“Ireland can be a world leader in restorative ocean farming, but only if the government implements the 2017 Aquaculture Licensing Review recommendations — without action, we risk losing jobs in coastal communities and seeing innovation move elsewhere. The Irish Seaweed Association will play a vital role in uniting industry, research, and policymakers to drive innovation and sustainable growth in the sector.”

At the launch event in Trinity Business School this afternoon ocean farmers, researchers, industry innovators, and students will gather to hear more about innovation and new ventures in regenerative ocean farming.

Nessa O’Connor, Professor in Zoology, Trinity College Dublin, said: “The Irish Seaweed Association is a milestone in Ireland’s commitment to regenerative ocean farming and the development of a sustainable blue economy. Seaweed farming requires no freshwater or additional fertilisers and has far less environmental impact than land-based agriculture or other forms of aquaculture. When practised sustainably, seaweed farming could even help improve local habitats, biodiversity and water quality.”

By supporting startups, SMEs, and industry players, the Irish Seaweed Association will help secure funding, expand market access, and drive automation, processing advancements, and new product development. Committed to education and community engagement, the Irish Seaweed Association aims to ensure coastal regions benefit directly from a thriving, sustainable development of the seaweed industry.

Dr Dharm Kapletia, Research Fellow at Centre for Social innovation at Trinity Business School added: “The seaweed farming industry faces challenges including-complex licensing procedures, fragmented governance, limited access to processing facilities and uncertain market demand.

“The Irish Seaweed Association will serve as a unified voice for the sector, advocating for coherent and inclusive policies, investments, as well as facilitating knowledge-sharing and collaboration.”

You can find out more about The Irish Seaweed Association here, and check out our August 2017 interview with Danny Hatton here.