UConn Startup Revolutionizes Food Preservation… Through Kelp

[toby_sheppardbloch]

Connecticut’s emerging kelp farming industry produces sugar kelp primarily for food. Finding a place to sell the kelp has been a challenge for state seaweed farmers and a bottleneck to growth.
“There’s been growing interest among state farmers in cultivating seaweed in Long Island Sound for its environmental benefits, but they don’t know how or where they can sell it,” Qiao explained.
Other commercial uses of seaweed include pharmaceutical products such as sunscreen and moisturizers and food products such as yogurt and sauces. Using seaweed extract to preserve food is an entirely new application with the potential to revolutionize the food industry, Qiao says.

https://today.uconn.edu/2025/11/uconn-startup-revolutionizes-food-preservation-through-kelp/