CRRC will conduct a feasibility study that advances the Alaska Mariculture Cluster’s understanding of the most promising avenues and projects for adding mariculture processing capacity in Alaska. The primary objectives of this feasibility study include:

• An economic assessment of processing costs, including harvest, transportation of
  biomass, freezing for stabilization, and shipment of kelp biomass to end users.
• A final report summarizing data collected to provide farmers and processors in the Chugach Region with a return-on-investment estimate for the operation and harvest of commercial kelp farms.
• An assessment of a variety of harvesting techniques using existing commercial fishing infrastructure to lengthen processing stabilization windows following harvest.
• To explore out-of-state processing to address labor shortages, energy costs, lack of infrastructure and proximity to end users.

PWSEDD will conduct a feasibility study to support development of a business plan and preliminary architectural and engineering design work for a Shared Mariculture/Seafood Processing Center to assist Cordova’s mariculture sector. Discussions among Alaska Mariculture Cluster partners over the past year all point to processing kelp (and more specifically, drying kelp) as a key bottleneck in growing Alaska’s kelp farming sector. No seafood processors in Prince William Sound are equipped to process kelp, leaving our pioneering kelp farmers to process kelp literally by hand, either in their own kitchens or in makeshift spaces designed for other purposes. The PWSEDD and its nonprofit and private partners propose to develop a detailed business plan for a shared mariculture/seafood processing facility, and conduct preliminary architectural and engineering work for the facility. This work will help leverage funds to develop the facility and purchase equipment needed for processing mariculture and fish products

KEDC has initiated a feasibility study to assess the potential for developing a mariculture processing facility in Kodiak. The primary goal of this feasibility study is to assess the potential for mariculture processing infrastructure in Kodiak and determine the most promising avenues for adding capacity to the region’s mariculture industry. The project includes key deliverables such as an assessment of kelp farming potential, facility design, and the development of a comprehensive business and marketing plan. The study will engage a wide range of stakeholders including local mariculture companies, tribal entities, and community leaders to ensure the facility aligns with Kodiak’s economic and environmental priorities. The feasibility study is expected to provide direct job creation, boost revenue through processed kelp products, and diversify Kodiak’s economy. Regular stakeholder engagement and community outreach will be conducted to gather feedback and build support for the project. The final report will present key findings, facility design plans, and economic projections, positioning Kodiak as a leader in sustainable mariculture development.

The proposed project will explore the economic and engineering feasibility of a floating, mobile seaweed processing facility. Project deliverables will include:

1. A design and engineering study that will build a database of current commercially-available seaweed processing equipment; collect critical input and output parameters; build a financial model to assess system financial and production performance; recommend a specific design for a mobile and modular seaweed processing solution; and deliver CAD architectural layout drawings and a plan for installation and operation of the selected equipment.
2. Consultation with a seafood processing expert to identify potential complementary uses of the processing facility during the ‘off season’ for seaweed, supporting efficient use of the capital equipment year-round.
3. A database of dehydrated seaweed product specifications required by key local and global sources of demand for seaweed.
4. Assessment of demand (quantity and value) for mobile seaweed processing in Alaska.

Context

At present, the optimal areas for growing seaweed in Alaska have not yet been identified. Growers do not yet have access to robust siting models based on sound data and science; growers have made educated guesses in farm siting decisions, with varying results to date. In this context, public and private investment in medium to large fixed-site processing facilities is likely to concentrate seaweed farming in geographically adjacent ocean regions. These regions may or may not emerge to be the most productive from a seaweed farming perspective. Moreover, it is likely that medium to large fixed-site processing facilities will be established in areas that already have better-developed infrastructure. In that case, they will strand disadvantaged rural and Indigenous communities without economical access to processing, preventing their effective participation in the emerging mariculture economy.

Exploring smaller-scale, modular, and mobile seaweed processing solutions will address both of these challenges. A successful mobile seaweed primary processing and dehydration solution could provide processing support to a wide range of Alaska’s geographically dispersed communities, supporting seaweed farming wherever it emerges successfully and helping Alaska avoid stranded processing assets in areas that turn out to be sub-optimal for seaweed growing. It could also provide efficient market access for disadvantaged rural and Indigenous communities that may produce seaweed cost-effectively but lack local processing solutions. This project would therefore address a key gap in the processing sector, meet a significant regional need across the three main regions of Alaska expected to participate in seaweed farming, and promote equity and market access for disadvantaged rural and Indigenous communities.

The feasibility study will focus on exploring the expansion of small-scale, modular, mariculture processing capacity in Southeast Alaska by delivering a template for the formation of local processing facilities and commercial kitchens in rural coastal communities. The study will include the addition of a cooler and/or freezer container vans to increase cold/cool storage facility for shellfish distribution. The project will serve mariculture farms and harvesters in southern Southeast, who wish to produce primary and/or value-added products and/or aggregate products for local and visitor sales. The concept can be scalable and replicated in other areas and has the potential to provide regional mariculture processing hubs in rural areas.

Context

Ketchikan is a major transportation hub for southern Southeast Alaska, serving Annette Island and Prince of Wales. Ketchikan is also an important visitor destination with over 1.5 million visitors in 2023. The growing visitor industry creates a unique situation for Ketchikan to help local stakeholders diversify their economic opportunities, encourage innovation, boost local food production, and sustain cultural values. OceansAlaska and Fishes and Dishes LLC, propose to create a local commercial kitchen and processing space for mariculture farmers, wild stock harvesters, and Indigenous gatherers. The feasibility study will focus on compiling the road map of necessary agencies, resources, permits, equipment layout, plumbing/electrical, equipment, and energy needs to achieve this goal and provide this resource to other communities.

This project will study the feasibility of establishing a regional biorefinery in Homer to support the production of value-added kelp products including seaweed-infused skin care products and plant biostimulants while also studying adapting an existing fish processing plant to better accommodate primary seaweed processing and to house a regional biorefinery.

Context

In North America we are seeing per pound prices for farmed kelp decline as some growers gain efficiencies in operations, scale-up, and begin to sell into more commodity-like markets1. In Alaska there is a growing recognition that many in our industry will need to follow suit. However, some farmers and entire regions, including the Kenai Peninsula and Lower Cook Inlet region, will need to find higher value markets due to constraints that will keep kelp mariculture small in scale, and costs of operation high. Participation in higher value markets, however, requires innovation and new product development to expand opportunities. Gaining efficiencies in operations in this case requires modernizing some of the basic infrastructure at our local processing facility.

Alaska Oyster Cooperative and OceansAlaska will study the feasibility of building and operating a receiving, processing, storage, and shipping facility for mariculture products on Little Naukati Bay in Southeast Alaska. The intent is to serve present and future aquatic farms in the region by enabling increased processing efficiency and decreased energy costs, fostering expanded production. The proposed facility will facilitate the offloading, sorting, boxing and refrigeration of farmed products.  The project location between farms and the island road system will reduce the time and energy expended to bring product to market. This project will directly reduce the use of petroleum fuels by the Cooperative members. The project is intended to support multiple regional users, and will be developed in coordination with regional Alaska Tribal entities, local governments and industry participants.

OceansAlaska is a 501c3 non-profit which seeks to foster the responsible development of mariculture in southern Southeast Alaska. As a partner, OceansAlaska will provide administrative and financial services to the project.

This project will study the feasibility of designing and then building a seaweed processing facility that can also be used to support the processing and dehydration of other local food products, including seafood and other produce. OVK will consult with community citizens to identify community uses and requests for dehydration processing. Year-round use of the dehydration facility would support community food security and food sovereignty, while also enabling the sale of specialty dehydrated food products to tourism customers.

Context

Multiple Kake community citizens have submitted or received permit applications for commercial seaweed farming and have participated in seaweed mariculture training offered by the Native Conservancy. In partnership with the Native Conservancy, a commercial kelp seed nursery will be established and operational in Kake in 2024. First-stage processing and dehydration is the missing piece for the Organized Village of Kake to establish and fully participate in the emerging mariculture economy.

OVK is in the process of renovating and revitalizing the historic cannery in Kake: construction is near completion, and the building will be re-opened for community use, tourism and local business development soon. The renovated historic cannery is one option for housing local food processing facilities, and it is near OVK’s primary and backup power generation stations. Insulated pipes exist between the cannery area and the power generation stations that could be used to pipe waste heat from the power generation facilities to the seaweed processing facility, increasing the operational and cost efficiency of a seaweed and food processing facility in Kake.

Building and maintaining processing facilities with food safety standards and requirements for wholesale commercial sales is expensive. Managed shared-use facilities can efficiently serve many producers at once. Short- and long-term cold storage allows for local products to be harvested at peak and used throughout the year. Developing solutions to transportation challenges for aggregated local food products is a key focus of KAPA and this project.

The food hub will not only provide crucial infrastructure for the aggregation, processing, and storage of mariculture commodities but will also facilitate knowledge-sharing and training opportunities, including vital educational programs such as HACCP, FSMA, and GMP. By strengthening the skills and knowledge base of local producers, the food hub will foster a thriving and sustainable food system, benefiting the entire community.