Development of New Seaweed Nursery Strategies for Nori and Dulse Production in the Northeast

Development of New Seaweed Nursery Strategies for Nori and Dulse Production in theNortheastRedmond Sarah PI & Angera Andrea Jr Co-PI Springtide Seaweed LLCDecreasing access uncertainty in wild fisheries and concern about seafood sustainabilityis leading to an increasing interest in aquaculture. While seaweed aquaculture is apromising new area for growth in the US production is limited to a small number offarms that cultivate just one or two species of kelp. The red seaweeds dulse (Palmariapalmata) and nori (Porphyra spp.) are nutritious valuable relatively rare sea vegetablesfrom the North Atlantic making them species of interest for aquaculture. While there isinterest from farmers and buyers for these crops there is no commercial source of seedavailable for farmers to grow a commercially viable crop. Springtide Seaweed proposesto develop reliable nursery systems for production of high quality seed to support thedevelopment of these valuable crops in the North Atlantic. Key nursery strategies will beinvestigated including improvements in seawater sterilization utilizing electrochemicaltechnology and nori and dulse seedstock establishment cultivation and clean viablespore production for the development of commercial farming seed systems.The development of new cultivation systems for these new macroalgal species will offernew opportunities for sustainable and environmentally responsible economicdevelopment in the US especially in rural coastal areas. Economically viable seaweedfarming can offer opportunity for diversification to traditional fishermen oyster musseland fish farmers and encourage more women farmers. Seaweed farming can helpimprove water quality requires no fertilizer or fresh water and produces nutritionallydense vegetarian seafood. The new crops can be sold fresh dried and processed intoother snacks and foods creating new opportunities for farmers food producers andconsumers.