Blog

The National Sea Grant Law Center and Connecticut Sea Grant received funding from NOAA in 2019 to facilitate conversations among state agencies about the food safety regulatory framework governing the sale of seaweed in its whole form for human food. A virtual workshop will be held in early 2021 to provide a forum for state agencies and federal partners to share information and insights regarding food safety frameworks. To learn more about the project, please visit: http://nsglc.olemiss.edu/projects/regulatingseaweed/index.html.

To inform conversations at the workshop and the larger National Sea Grant Law Center research project, we are soliciting input from the seaweed industry through a virtual food safety discussion panel and a short, anonymous survey.

Webinar

On November 17, 2020 at 3 pm EST (2 pm CST/12 pm PST), the National Sea Grant Law Center (NSGLC) will host a 90-minute webinar featuring a food safety panel discussion with seaweed industry members from around the country. The webinar will provide an overview of the NSGLC project, and the seaweed industry panelists will discuss their thoughts and experiences about seaweed aquaculture and food safety. Panelists will include representatives from the Maine Aquaculture Association, Stonington Kelp Co (Connecticut), Sea Grove Kelp (Alaska), and Monterrey Bay Seaweeds (California). To register for the November 17 webinar, please visit our Eventbrite page at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/seaweed-food-safety-webinar-industry-panel-registration-126878032611.

Survey

Members of the seaweed industry may provide input to the project team by participating in a survey accessible through this link: https://uofmississippi.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_eQfatG9eGrp7ukJ.  The survey will remain open until December 11. Results will be shared with planning committee members to inform workshop planning and with state regulators during the workshop to inform discussions. Results from the survey may be included in workshop summary reports or presentations, but will not be formally published.

If you have any questions or would like additional information, please contact Stephanie Otts at sshowalt@olemiss.edu.