Cooperation, innovation and strategy under the spotlight at Seagriculture EU

Europe's key seaweed industry event has come to a close for another year. Held in Rotterdam from 17–19 June, Seagriculture EU 2025 gathered over 250 seaweed stakeholders from more than 30 countries, under the theme “Seaweed 2.0: Today’s Scaling for Tomorrow’s Needs.”

Discussions focused on how Europe's seaweed sector can grow responsibly, with a variety of speakers focusing on the importance of cooperation, in addition to innovations in farming, processing and value-added products, and the need for better regulation, strategic planning and conservation measures to ensure the industry has a sustainable future.

Missed our liveblog last week? Catch up on the key Seagriculture EU 2025 conference highlights here:

The three-day event, held from 17–19 June, offered a blend of technical sessions, networking opportunities, a trade show, and hands-on site visits to seaweed seed and technology company Hortimare, and NIOZ (Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research).

The main conference featured nearly 50 expert speakers across five plenary sessions, two panels, and the ever-popular "Seaweed Elevator Pitches". Topics ranged from market development and environmental governance to innovation in bioplastics, carbon sequestration, biostimulants and feed additives.

Among the highlights of this year's conference was a presentation from Pierre Paslier, co-founder of Earthshot Prize-winning company Notpla, who gave insights into his company's development of biodegradable "plastic" packaging materials from brown and red seaweed extracts.

Other high-profile speakers included Oliver Hicks, CEO of UK-based Algapelago Marine, showcasing his company's “Blue Forest” project, a regenerative mariculture initiative linking kelp farming with seabed restoration, and Brian Tsuyoshi Takeda, speaking about Japan's J-Blue Credits in support of coastal restoration.

A key session on the European seaweed roadmap brought together EU policymakers and researchers to address governance and spatial planning. Angela Schultz-Zehden (s.Pro) warned that if seaweed cultivation zones are not included in today’s marine spatial plans, “we won’t get them in 2035", arguing that securing sea space now is essential to enable large-scale seaweed farming in the future.

The ecosystem services provided by seaweed cultivation was another key focus, including nutrient removal, carbon sequestration, oxygenation, and marine habitat creation. Jon Dickson (NIOZ) presented a successful Dutch reef restoration project that boosted biodiversity and fish populations, while Mar Fernández Méndez (AWI/MacroCarbon) outlined plans for offshore seaweed cultivation paired with carbon storage. However, keynote speaker Annette Bruhn (Aarhus University) warned against “overselling” ecosystem services without standardised methods for measurement, stressing the need for reproducible systems and collaboration between scientists, industry, and authorities.

Meanwhile, Juliet Brodie (Natural History Museum) urged stronger international biosecurity and conservation frameworks for seaweed, arguing for seedbanks, resistant cultivars, and proper governance to prevent invasive species and impact on local ecosystems, while recognising the need to "reconcile the needs of the industry with the protection of wild stocks."

Collaboration emerged as a central theme, with multiple speakers highlighting the need for stronger partnerships across the seaweed value chain to enable sustainable growth.

Haik van Exel (Hortimare) emphasised the importance of building capable teams within companies and across the sector: “There is a future for cultivation, but it needs a different mindset, a different strategy. It needs collaboration… you have to build dream teams.”

Meanwhile, in a keynote on governance, Dr. Sander van den Burg (Wageningen University) emphasized that collaboration will be key to the European seaweed industry’s success. “Farmers often hold limited influence in the value chain,” he said. “By working together through cooperatives or joint projects, producers can strengthen their bargaining position and resilience.”

In addition to the conference sessions, trade show and poster exhibition, this year's edition of Seagriculture EU also provided participants with a dedicated networking app, which enabled over 140 pre-scheduled meetings, in addition to real-time updates and communication between attendees. "The tool significantly enhanced engagement and collaboration throughout the event," organisers DG Benelux said.

“This year’s edition offered a high-quality program and meaningful networking opportunities,” said Kuno Jacobs, Managing Director at DLG Benelux. "We’re proud to support the community as it grows and connects."

Next year's editions of the Seagriculture Conferences are Seagriculture World 2026, taking place in Bangkok, Thailand from 19 - 21 May 2026, and Seagriculture EU 2026, set for Gothenburg, Sweden from 16 - 18 June 2026.

WeAreAquaculture is a media partner of Seagriculture EU.