Scottish seaweed processor raises £595k

The formal launch of the brand by Seaweed Enterprises marks a pivotal step in the company’s journey to become a leading processing hub for multi-seaweed species.

Seaweed is projected to grow in global market value from $17bn to $30bn by 2029. Beyond food, the seaweed sector alone is forecasted to generate $11.8bn in new revenue.

However, despite recent interest and changes, the Scottish seaweed industry remains under-invested, untapped and highly fragmented.

House of Seaweed, based in Glenrothes, Fife, wild harvests along a 30km stretch of the East Neuk coastline. It has been raising funds to kit out its factory, in an effort to scale up and address previous bottlenecks hindering European growth.

It has already raised more than a third of its £1.6m investment target.

A portion of these funds will be used to upgrade its factory to meet BRCGS accreditation, with food grade partitions and epoxy resin floor finishes. In addition to this, it will be installing a bespoke seaweed washing machine that will clean the seaweed that is agitated by high pressure water jets above and below the water to remove any molluscs or crustacea. This will then be transported onto a vibrating table to remove excess water from the seaweed before being manually inspected by staff ahead of starting the drying process.

Pete Higgins, co-founder and CEO of House of Seaweed, said the business was thrilled to unveil the new brand.

“Our new identity reflects and celebrates the brilliance of the raw material we work with and tells the story of who we are, what we do, and the future impact we hope to have on this blue planet,”​ he explained.

“We are driven by the environmental and societal impact we can make through our hero ingredient, together as a team alongside our partners, suppliers and customers. The whole team at House of Seaweed would like to thank our current investors for their belief in our mission and for joining us on what will be a very exciting journey.”​

Seaweed Enterprises, which was set up in June 2023, will be legally changing its name once fundraising has concluded.   

A separate brand, Oshan, has also been created by the company. This will serve its food service customers and consumers, which a formal launch to follow in the next couple of months.

In other news, more than 170 employees have lost their jobs as Sirane Group appoints administrators.​​