© PIP
With its diverse applications in yield-boosting biostimulants, methane-reducing animal feed, and marine habitat restoration, tropical red seaweed is on track to become a high-value, high-impact solution for food security and ocean health. However, South-East Asian coastal seaweed farms that produce tropical red seaweeds struggle to maintain sustainable levels of productivity and meet growing demand, with their pain points being a lack of quality seedlings and inefficiencies in the seaweed supply chain.
Coast 4C’s solution? Transitioning coastal communities from traditional to regenerative farming.
Coast 4C is dedicated to building economically and environmentally regenerative farmer communities and improving their livelihoods. Through their GROW program, the company provides smallholder seaweed farmers with technological support to help them transition from traditional to regenerative farming practices. This has led to a fourfold yield increase and 25 percent improvement in their seaweed crop quality. They also equip coastal communities with growth strategies they need to sell quality seaweed at competitive price points, thus serving the financial needs of both farmers and buyers.
Bernice Tang, impact lead at PIP, commented in a press release, “We are impressed by Coast 4C’s unique experience and model in South-East Asia of partnering smallholder communities to farm regenerative seaweed in integrated Marine Protected Areas, while deploying supply chain and monitoring technologies to access higher-value markets at scale. This way, coastal communities can prosper and gain resilience, and the ocean is protected – fitting our focus on sustainable systems and patient capital that prioritize long-term impact over short-term gains.”
Coast 4C focuses on strengthening the seaweed supply chain through integrated regenerative farming, enhancing livelihoods for local communities and reducing environmental impacts - aligning well with PIP’s investment thesis. The investment is set to directly support the growth of Coast 4C’s initiatives in the Philippines, enabling them to scale their business model while maximizing their positive impact on Southeast Asian coastal communities.
“We're delighted to welcome Potato Impact Partners as an investor and partner as we continue to transform the tropical seaweed industry to solve one of the ocean's biggest opportunities and challenges,” said Nicholas Hill, chief executive officer and co-founder of Coast 4C. “It is critical that we build the right team and partners who are mission aligned and can bring expertise to help propel us forwards, and Potato Impact Partners are a fantastic addition alongside our existing investors. We look forward to building a regenerative seaweed industry together.”
Through the funding, PIP joined existing Coast 4C investors Conservation International Ventures, Rumah Group & Foundation, Rising Tide Investment, and Hatch Blue, seeking to drive social, environmental and economic benefits in Southeast Asia.
