AQUACULTURE
Floating aquaculture and seaweed farms grow at scale
Sea-based farms cultivate seafood and seaweed on water, offering food and climate solutions
Sugar Kelp in Port. Photo by KOASTAL.
Sea-based farming is expanding rapidly as land-based agriculture hits limits. Floating aquaculture systems—growing fish, seaweed, or shellfish on water—deliver food and environmental benefits while adapting to space and climate pressures.
Here are real, active projects making waves today:
Commercial seaweed farm in North Sea wind park: The Netherlands opened the first commercial-scale floating seaweed farm inside the Hollandse Kust Zuid Offshore Wind Farm in autumn 2024. Led by North Sea Farmers and backed by Amazon’s Right Now Climate Fund, the 5-hectare project is pioneering dual-use offshore infrastructure for farming and carbon capture.
Norway tests kelp carbon capture: SINTEF’s Norwegian Seaweed Centre launched a pilot seaweed farm off Frøya, Mid-Norway, over 20 hectares with 55,000 meters of kelp lines. It aims to explore CO₂ reduction and kelp cultivation technologies.
EU-backed Swedish seaweed pilots: The KOASTAL project has established six pilot seaweed farms along Sweden’s west coast supported by an EU digital platform for farmer support and technical solutions. The initiative is set to run through the end of 2025.
That’s not all: in the US, Florida research shows seaweed aquaculture can cleanse coastal waters by absorbing excess nitrogen, offering both ecosystem and economic benefits.
Floating aquaculture and seaweed farms now demonstrate food production, carbon sequestration, and environment restoration—all from the water. The next scale-up challenge: regulation, supply chains, and integrating these farms into coastal economies.
—TFI
The Floating Institute is all about advancing knowledge of the global floating economy.