Massive blooms of sargassum seaweed are choking Caribbean coastlines – threatening marine life, deterring tourism and damaging coastal economies – but where others see a threat, SOS Biotech is already turning the invasive species into valuable products.
Few innovations could have the same transformative potential for aquaculture as marine-adapted tilapia, a new strain of which is now poised for commercial launch in Vietnam.
Spanning nearly all the continents, the International Biology and Macroalgae Center (IBMC) hopes to use knowledge sharing between key seaweed producers to supercharge this ocean crop and make it a viable commodity on the global market.
Dr Emily Kostas, a multidisciplinary bioscientist and applied phycologist with over a decade’s experience working with seaweed, offers insights into how biorefineries work, why they matter and what challenges lie ahead.
