According to NOAA, seaweed farming is the fastest growing aquaculture sector in the United States. Despite growing interest and the rise in number of applications to farm annually, barriers preventing the expansion of the sector exist. While advocacy-driven messaging touts the potential environmental benefits and uses of seaweed aquaculture, established pathways into many of those outlets are either developing or non-existent. Individuals seeking practical information (i.e. accessible markets) are left feeling frustrated. A more complete picture of the seaweed aquaculture sector was needed. Led by Connecticut Sea Grant, the collaboration of 11 Sea Grant programs created the Sea Grant National Seaweed Hub (https://seaweedhub.extension.uconn.edu/) to serve as a central clearinghouse for available science-based, non-advocate, and practical resources related to the emerging domestic seaweed aquaculture industry. This goal was achieved in two phases: Phase I – to identify and addresses emerging challenges through the development of responsive, non-advocate resources in a publicly accessible format; and Phase II - to continue addressing emerging needs through the development of responsive resources and create more professional networking opportunities for stakeholder engagement.
Phase I activities included performing a comprehensive national needs assessment of all relevant groups involved with the sector, hosting the first National Seaweed Symposium, establishing a dedicated website to serve as a centralized repository for seaweed resources developed through this effort, creating diverse stakeholder-driven work groups to refine and devise work plans to address challenges and opportunities identified from the Symposium and results from the needs assessment, and create publicly accessible resources that directly meet the sector’s needs.
Phase II activities included the hosting of the second National Seaweed Symposium, hosting of a webinar series based on topics requested by stakeholders in Phase I, virtual meet-ups for specific sector groups, and the development of resources to support culinary uses of seaweeds and the needs of the regulatory sector.
Since the launch of the National Seaweed Hub in 2019, the seaweed aquaculture sector has doubled, making the need for this effort more relevant than ever. As a result of the National Seaweed Hub activities, collaborations between various stakeholder groups have increased. Industry members have formed cooperatives and connected with buyers, regulatory agencies are sharing knowledge and expertise to support industry expansion in their states, and general audiences are using the hub’s resources to gain more knowledge about the emerging industry.