Economic, social and environmental opportunities identified for the potential of local EU seaweeds for application in the biostimulant market
A biostimulant can be defined as a substance or microorganism that, when applied to seeds, plants, or on the rhizosphere, stimulates natural processes, including stimulating plant growth, optimize plant health, improving the nutrient use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress, and enhancing crop quality and yield.
While many biostimulants are available on the market, seaweed-based biostimulants have an advantage with their production being particularly economically viable and having the potential to benefit marine biodiversity, reduce carbon emissions and be part of the development of the circular economy.
The Bio4Safe project investigated the seaweed biostimulant market and the potential of local seaweeds for application in biostimulants to create economic opportunities for local seaweed producers. A strategy for market penetration was developed through workshops with different stakeholders resulting in different business cases. North Sea Farmers (NSF), a non-profit organization off the coast of the Netherlands dedicated to fostering success in the European seaweed industry, as partner in this project, created a road map with clear information on the seaweed-based biostimulant market and the economic, social and environmental potential of European seaweed production up to 2050.
Currently, the common reflex for restoring soil is to use fertilisers. However this can have negative environmental impacts as it can lead to damaging ecosystems and polluting fresh water sources. By using biostimulants, the use of water and fertilisers by farmers can be reduced while simultaneously strengthening crops and restoring soil.
As Ireland is an island nation, an opportunity to penetrate the seaweed market for use in the biostimulant sector could be economically beneficial and could have co-benefits for the horticultural sector by contributing to the production of seaweed based biostimulants which improve resource efficiency.
Find out more about this innovation by contacting Róisín on roisin@erinn.eu. For more innovations like this, visit our Innovation Hub.
