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Q&A With Food For Climate League

October 7, 2025

Lead Entities: Food for Climate League

Grant Component: Market Development

What does it take to build Alaska kelp and oysters into mainstream staples? For what are currently niche markets in the food sector, it starts with understanding the existing perceptions of stakeholders—from producers and farmers to consumers—and how to shift them.

Southeast Conference (SEC), on behalf of the Alaska Mariculture Cluster, set out to do just that, as part of a broader, federally funded effort to grow the state’s mariculture industry. SEC tapped the experts at Food for Climate League (FCL)—a nonprofit working to make climate-smart food choices the norm—to lay the foundation with targeted food-sector market research. Already champions of the climate-smart virtues of sea vegetables, oysters, and other sustainable aquatic foods through its Aquatic Foods project, FCL was well-positioned to dive in.

We chatted with FCL’s Director of Programs, Gesina Beckert, and Director of Strategy, Sophie Egan, about what made this partnership impactful and how they see Alaska kelp and oysters fitting into a more sustainable food future.

Q&A Below!

Sophie’s presentation from the Mariculture Conference of Alaska 2024.

Sophie: Through our aquatic foods communications toolkits we had developed expertise in how to overcome barriers to Americans eating more bivalves and sea vegetables. This expertise happened to be exactly what Southeast Conference was looking for. SEC wanted to figure out a lot of things that we were eager to figure out. Like, what’s getting in the way of consumers being more excited about these foods? What would it take to influence culture, supply chains, product, and menu mix?

SEC also shared our interest in learning from other examples of healthy and sustainable foods that have gone from super niche to mass market. Their questions were remarkably aligned with FCL’s focus on core human needs, behavioral science, communication, and narrative strategies.

Gesina: We learned about this investment in American-grown resources, and we saw an opportunity to build community and local resources in Alaska, helping the state diversify its economy. It all felt holistically aligned with how we envision a climate-smart future.

Sophie: Project Drawdown and other sources of climate science tell us that the two biggest things you can do to eat climate-smart are eat a plant-rich diet—not necessarily vegan but with an emphasis on foods from the plant kingdom—and reduce food waste. And when it comes to shifting diets to plant-forward, it’s not as if people just stop eating meat or animal foods. What they replace those foods with also has a big impact. If people are eating less beef while shifting to sustainable aquatic foods for their protein needs, that’s a huge win for the planet.

Gesina: Bivalves like oysters, mussels, clams, and scallops are arguably the most sustainable animal protein, according to the Blue Food Assessment. This comes down to the way they grow and their symbiosis with the ocean. They don’t need any inputs. They don’t need any fertilizer. They don’t create greenhouse gas emissions.

Gesina: When we think about the perception of sea vegetables right now, it’s often tied to Asian cuisine. When we think about oysters, scallops, mussels, and clams, it’s tied to premium. And those narratives are limiting. So, if we can change the perception of bivalves to an accessible, appealing, sustainable source of protein—and if we can change the perception of sea vegetables to a very nutritious, flavorful, and sustainable vegetable that can be integrated into many cuisines—there’s a huge opportunity. And this is true for eaters as well as chefs.

Gesina: Absolutely. Alaska Kelp doesn’t have a big food market right now—the initial applications are often considered to be fertilizer or animal feed. I’ve heard from Alaskan producers that our research has helped them see the potential in the food market for their ingredients.

Gesina: I think the opportunities lie within imagining how kelp can be used beyond the immediate associations people have of powdered forms, seasonings, seaweed salad, or sushi. Once you get chefs excited about the potential, their creativity is unlocked. Some examples already being developed include kelp pickles, burger patties, soups, and seaweed meatballs mixed with chickpeas for protein.

Similarly with oysters, the immediate application is on the half shell. But elevating the perception of canned and fried oysters in dishes like Po Boys can increase their accessibility.

Sophie: I was particularly excited about the two audience segments that we zeroed in on [in our research]. One was Established Eaters: people who already eat kelp and oysters but are maybe not yet enjoying them from Alaska. This audience presents a really exciting opportunity because they already like those foods, and you get to tell a compelling Alaska story.

The other audience segment is Alaska Visitors, because we know that when you go on a trip, you’re in a period of disruption. And from a behavior change perspective, those moments are great for forming new habits. You have a positive sensory experience—you smell the sea air, soak up the beautiful trees and scenery—and all that leaves a lasting impression that may compel you to keep eating something you tried for the first time while on a trip to Alaska.

Sophie: We’ve learned from other ingredients that were niche and became “Instagram famous” or crazy popular quickly, that sometimes rapid growth can cause harm to communities where the foods are produced or grown. It can make the price point unattainable for folks there, and it can lead to shortcuts in production practices that undermine the good that started them off—[including] that they were good for the planet. So, the goal is to grow these markets, but intentionally, in a way that preserves the environmental integrity of the food. That will require close management of supply and demand. Because the other thing we don’t want to happen is to leave producers with far too much supply, and without the market for them. We want to help them grow their businesses in ways that match the growth in consumption.

Sophie: At FCL, we bring a perspective on food culture that you don’t need to invent a food trend, but rather build on things that are already trending. For example, the current consumer interest in protein—how can you leverage that to promote a more overlooked protein option that happens to be good for the planet?

We know that, in general, Americans’ food choices are based on taste, cost, health, and convenience. Sustainability, though they care about it, is much lower on the list. We’ve seen, in the context of beans and other climate-smart foods, that if you can connect foods that happen to be sustainable to taste, cost … and to a fantastic food experience that meets their needs around diet, around community, and connecting to their own heritage, that can really drive purchasing behavior.  

Gesina: What I see: You’re walking through a town like Sitka … and every restaurant has Alaska kelp and oysters featured in different formats. And the way it’s integrated, in the form of pickles, or pasta, or fried in po’boys [sandwiches], will open minds to opportunities. Already known for wild-caught salmon, pollock, and other seafood, now Alaska will be known for sustainable kelp production, too. People will recognize these products on a large scale. You will see them in snack products in supermarkets. And it will be growing at a pace that benefits local communities—via, potentially, more processing facilities and jobs.

Part of what will get us there is the market development happening now. We closed our work and gave our recommendations, and the next phase is for a local marketing agency to implement the strategies. Hosting events, getting products into chefs’ and product developers’ hands—they are doing it right now. So, we can actually see how this grows.

Background

Southeast Conference (SEC) is the federally designated Economic Development District (EDD) for Southeast Alaska, as well as the state designated Alaska Regional Development Organization. SEC’s mission is to undertake and support activities that promote strong economies, sustainable communities, and a healthy environment in Southeast Alaska.

In September 2022, Southeast Conference was awarded a $49 million U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC) grant to catalyze a viable and sustainable mariculture industry in Alaska, supporting the production of shellfish and seaweed, for the long-term benefit of the state’s economy, environment, and communities.

SEC leads the Alaska Mariculture Cluster (AMC) grant coalition, which includes members of Alaska’s mariculture industry, tribal organizations, regulatory agencies, university system, regional EDDs, trade organizations, and others. A Governance Body, composed of AMC coalition leaders and Tribal executives from each of the project regions, guides the grant’s work and equity metrics.

The AMC has complementary grant components designed to break down barriers and develop Alaska’s mariculture industry.  The Overarching Narrative explains how the grant components work together to grow the industry in an equitable and responsible manner. The full project period for the AMC BBBRC project is October 1, 2022 to September 30th, 2026.