Alejandro H. Buschmann1
1Centro i-mar, CeBiB & MASH, Universidad de Los Lagos, Puerto Montt, Chile
Globally seaweed production is undergoing a rapid expansion at a time of accelerating climate change, hence raising new challenges for producers and the environment. Currently, the seaweed industry supports the livelihood of millions of small-scale farmers and processors, including women, demonstrating it potential to drive the development of many coastal areas worldwide. A relevant proportion of seaweed production goes to human consumption, which is part of the blue food supply chain, especially in Asian countries. A less significant proportion of the global seaweed production has been driven by a growing commercial demand for higher value seaweed-derived products, such as cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, including agarose, but also by less valuable products but with a larger market such as seaweed-based agronomic biostimulants and biomaterials among other uses which offer to open new market opportunities. However, seaweed production has several challenges related to their global expansion such as the consolidation of new market opportunities, productivity, sustainability, installation of proper and global biosecurity standards, and risk management related to diseases and grazing outbreaks, offshore cultivation conditions, and the valorization of the local environmental benefits associated with coastal eutrophication and ocean acidification mitigation. In relation to these challenges, R&D and novel global and country level policies are required to make seaweed aquaculture a reality beyond Asian countries. Financial Support: FONDECYT (1221161), CeBiB (FB-0001), MASH (NCN2021_033).