Kelp Demand in Puerto Rico
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Hello all! I am investigating ocean farming in Puerto Rico, and trying to get a sense for the market there for kelp (primarily, but other ocean farming products too). As an island, it seems it would be prohibitively expensive to ship to the US or another island. Any insight would be much appreciated, thank you!
@randall_loker said:
Hi @randall_loker!
Exciting to hear you're investigating ocean farming in Puerto Rico. The Hub content is designed primarily for growing sugar kelp in cold waters and we have focused on markets in the surrounding areas so far.
While Puerto Rico imports a majority of the food consumed on the island, and red algae is not currently a typically consumed product on the island or islands nearby, there are other uses for this algae which might prove fruitful. For example, there is a commercial project in La Parguera, Puerto Rico, growing red algae for biofuels.
We recommend checking out our Market Your Business Course, in case you’d like to conduct market and consumer research in the area. We’d love to hear what you find and from others in the community who have additional information!
Hello @grace_collery - thanks so much for your thoughtful reply! I'll check it out and follow up with any interesting findings.
Hello @grace_collery - thanks so much for your thoughtful reply! I'll check it out and follow up with any interesting findings.
@randall_loker - Hi Randall. You might also be interested in the work done by Loretta Robinson at Marine Biological Lab, who is developing seaweed farming technology in Puerto Rico. You can read more about her introduction and website at the community thread here.
@lindsay_olsen said:
Excellent, will do, thank you Lindsay!
@lindsay_olsen said:
Excellent, will do, thank you Lindsay!
@randall_loker - I recently discovered the company Carbonwave based in San Juan. Could be interesting to check them out!