New Zealand

New Zealand’s long history of living in harmony with nature and deep knowledge of the marine environment, together with having the ideal conditions to cultivate giant kelp, make it a clear choice for our second operating location.

The cold, nutrient rich waters of the South Island have long provided the perfect growing conditions for Macrocystis Pyrifera, also known as giant kelp or bladder kelp.  

In New Zealand, we cultivate locally sourced Macrocystis Pyrifera in our onshore hatchery in Bluff to outplant back to marine farms in Akaroa Harbour. Once the kelp forest has a canopy, we harvest this, leaving the forest to grow and marine life to flourish. Through a biorefinery approach, we will process the bioactive components into products, starting with liquid biostimulant for agricultural and horticultural use.  

Proposed Expansion in Southland

Kelp Blue is excited to propose expanding our Macrocystis farming operations in the waters of Foveaux Strait, Southland.

After time on the water, engaging with stakeholders, and hosting public consultations, we have chosen a site that has the necessary criteria for our operations, and are preparing an application to farm in this marine space.

If approved, our farming operations will follow a staged approach. This means we will start small, regularly monitor our work and its impact, and implement these lessons so we can continuously improve how we farm.

The operations will start by establishing a marine monitoring programme (including mammals, seabirds, water quality and biodiversity), installing screw anchors to secure the submerged structures the kelp will grow on, and navigational markers for safety. These structures will then be seeded with tiny Macrocystis plants and will be regularly monitored to track the environmental conditions, biodiversity, kelp growth and the structures themselves.

Please find below a diary of consultation events, a link to an online survey, and a map of the selected site.

Consultations
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Let’s work together. We are actively seeking input and feedback from the community and stakeholders on our proposal.

To enable this, we are organising a series of hui in Southland, are spending time meeting, engaging, and listening to individuals and different groups. We invite all feedback and will be updating this page regularly with further information so please contact us at rimurimu@kelp.blue. We value your feedback, please follow the link to the public consultation survey

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