Algae Innovation Platform

The world has started turning towards seaweed for sustainable solutions to global challenges, (re)aligning economic growth, social value, ocean health, and sustainability. In East Anglia, we have too.

In 2021, Hethel Innovation launched the Algae Innovation Platform (AIP), with a mission of bringing together local, domestic, and international stakeholders to understand how to develop a sustainable and viable seaweed industry in the East of England.

The AIP so far

The AIP has been all about bringing together and connecting seaweed innovators, enthusiasts, and experts, creating a space for conversations and ideas to become collaborations and real solutions for the growth of the regional seaweed industry.

During its 3 years of activity, the platform grew to over 150 members, hosted 13 meetings, and facilitated multiple key connections and local supply-chain links. These relationships led to 3 cross-sector collaboration, commercialisation, scaling up, and spin-off projects, turning ideas into real action.

The SEA Project

One such spin-off project was the Seaweed in East Anglia (SEA) Project – a collaboration between the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas), the University of East Anglia (UEA), and the AIP (Hethel Innovation). Funded by the Norfolk Investment Framework (NCC), the SEA Project was established to pursue some of the challenges and opportunities highlighted through the AIP.

Nine research projects and reports were produced and brought together into a regional roadmap to help grow the seaweed economy in Norfolk and the East of England. In addition, the project led to job creation, increased awareness of seaweed innovation capabilities in Norfolk, and increased investment in the Norfolk seaweed industry.

Looking forward

We are now looking towards the future of the AIP and how it could bring value to the regional algae community going forward.

I recently swapped out my microalgae PhD for macroalgae innovation and joined Hethel Innovation to support the development of the AIP, helping shape a clear strategy and funding pathway going forward. I am here on placement for just 13-weeks, until mid-May.

So far, I have focused on developing an understanding of the emerging seaweed sector in both East Anglia and further afield, as well as engaging with stakeholders.

We are now looking at organising a virtual AIP meeting in April, to bring the community back together – both current and new members – to rekindle conversations, build new relationships, and brainstorm future opportunities. We are hoping to have flash talk updates, roundtable discussions, and start a dialogue on how these meetings could be organised going forward to bring most value to all.

With the time I have left on the project, I will continue engaging with stakeholders, assessing landscape and investment pathways, and ultimately translate my time with the AIP into actionable recommendations – hopefully paving the way for a SEA Project 2 in the future.

Want to get involved?

If you are working, researching, or even just interested in algae and algae innovation – macro or micro – please do get in touch! Every connection, conversation, and feedback shared will help shape the future and focus of the platform.

If you are not already a member, you can join the AIP by completing the following form

We will be in touch soon about the upcoming April AIP meeting. But in the meantime, do reach out if you would like to have a chat (swalker@hethelinnovation.com) about the platform or any future potential collaborations or projects.

You can also find out more about what has been done so far by looking at the SEA Project webpage and reports, event recap, blog, and project video, as well as our Deep Dive articles on seaweed in agriculture, bioplastics, and food.