Emerging Species The University of Maine’s Center for Cooperative Research is home to the sea vegetable aquaculture nursery where new native species are being developed for aquaculture. Dulse (Palmaria palmata), laver (Porphyra umbilicalis), horsetail kelp (Laminaria digitata), gracilaria (Gracilaria tikvahiae), and skinny kelp (Saccharina latissima forma angustissima) are all in various stages of development. A […]
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Cited Sources Carignan, S. 2014. New Maine festival to celebrate benefits of seaweed. Bangor Daily News, Maine. Aug. 27, 2014. Chopin, T., AH Buschmann, C Halling, M Troell, N Kautsky, A Neori, GP Kraemer, JA Zertuche-Gonzales, C Yarish, and C Neefus. 2001. Integrating seaweeds into marine aquaculture systems: a key toward sustainability. Journal of Phycology 37:975-986. Crawford, […]
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Introduction Maine has a unique opportunity to develop a sea vegetable aquaculture industry, with its cold, clean waters, extensive coastline, and existing fishery and aquaculture industries and infrastructure. Interest in sea vegetable farming is growing in the state, as it may represent an opportunity for diversification for traditional fishermen or sea farmers. Sea vegetable aquaculture […]
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The Maine ten is a list of seaweed species that are currently wild harvested or cultivated in Maine. All of these “top ten” species can be used as food, but the main sea vegetables that are currently harvested or grown for sale are the kelps (Saccharina, Laminaria, and Alaria), the reds (Palmaria, Porphyra and Chondrus), […]
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Sugar kelp (Saccharina latissima) was the first commercial kelp crop to be cultivated in Maine in 2010, with other native species under development since then. Maine Sea Grant and the University of Maine’s Center for Cooperative Aquaculture Research (CCAR) has played a critical role in the development of this new industry, supporting a variety of […]
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Kelp Aquaculture Marine aquaculture in Maine is managed by the Department of Marine Resources (DMR). Our coastal waters are a public resource, and managed by the state through the DMR. The DMR requires a lease or license for any cultivation activity that takes place in marine coastal waters. This is a process that includes applications, […]
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The “Seaweed Scene 2014” was held on the beautiful oceanfront campus of the Southern Maine Community College in South Portland, ME, on August 30th. The morning meeting reviewed the latest from the new seaweed farmers and researchers in Maine and Long Island Sound. The diverse crowd, made up of researchers, students, entrepreneurs, writers, and the […]
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Seaweed Scene 2015 was held as part of the second Maine Seaweed Festival on the waterfront campus of the Southern Maine Community College in South Portland, ME, on August 29. Year 4 of the “Seaweed Scene” meetings, “Seaweed Scene 2015” continued the tradition by reviewing the progress and challenges, sea farmers and products, and lessons learned […]
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Seaweed is a $6 billion-dollar industry worldwide. Different types of seaweed (also called sea vegetables or marine macroalgae) are harvested for a variety of uses including fertilizer, food ingredients, and nutritional supplements. Maine’s established seaweed companies are industry leaders, and more people are looking to grow seaweed as a business or for supplemental income. Maine […]
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On August 30, 2012, approximately 100 people from diverse backgrounds attended a workshop titled “The Seaweed Scene” in Belfast, Maine. The meeting, held at the University of Maine Hutchinson Center, brought people together to discuss the ongoing development of the seaweed industry in the state and the region, and to build a network of professionals […]
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