ASSA has developed and published the Australian Seaweed Industry Blueprint Implementation Plan (Blueprint) that identified the critical path activities to industry growth. This proposal is for enhancing the knowledge and expertiese of the Australian seaweed industry through those visiting Korea to see and discuss that country's well developed seaweed industry which is currently at a size similar to what the Blueprint seeks to achieve for Australia in coming years. The proposal seeks to fill a major gap identified in the farm technology space with preliminery discussions with Korean seaweed industry representatives highlighting that the country uses a variety of 'in sea' and 'on land' seaweed culture systems. The information attained from the delegation's visit to Korea will be dissemenated by producing a final report and through planned workshops and meetings with the broader Australian seaweed industry.
Project number:
2023-095
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure:
$60,304.00
Principal Investigator:
Jo Kelly
Organisation:
Australian Sustainable Seaweed Alliance
Project start/end date:
30 Nov 2023
-
30 Jan 2025
Contact:
FRDC
TAGS
1. Gaining knowledge from viewing Korean seaweed R&D to commercial scale at sea and on land operations
2. Gaining knowledge from viewing seaweed supply chain activities from farm to market
3. Building and developing lasting relationships with Korean companies and R&D agencies
4. Disseminating the information captured by the delegation to the Australian seaweed industry
Authors:
Jens Knauer
Margaret B Rulw
Final Report
•
2025-04-05
•
2.66 MB
2023-095-DLD.pdf
A delegation of 15 people from the Australian seaweed industry, Government and research institutions attended a study tour of the South Korean seaweed industry from 11 – 17 November 2024. The study tour was organised by the Australian Sustainable Seaweed Alliance to facilitate the exploration of all facets of the sector in a major seaweed-producing nation, build relationships, gain key learnings and share Australian perspectives and technological advancements. The study tour focused on visits to and discussions with South Korean farming experts, Government officials, bioproduct developers, technology specialists and research scientists. Delegates were able to visit several operational farms as well as processing facilities and research institutes. Delegates were particularly interested in assessing farming technologies for their potential use in Australia, and potential product markets for biomass grown in Australia. Very noteworthy were the cultural acceptance and social licence of the seaweed industry in South Korea and the strong collaborations between R&D institutions and industry. The South Korean seaweed industry also showed strong vertical integration and diversification through different species being grown and development of new products. The observations, discussions and networks resulting from the study tour have the potential to benefit both the Australian and South Korean seaweed industries.
