Navigating the Seaweed Biorefinery Value Chain Implications for a Seaweed Farmer
Ladda ner
Typ
Examensarbete för masterexamen
Master's Thesis
Master's Thesis
Program
Management and economics of innovation (MPMEI), MSc
Quality and operations management (MPQOM), MSc
Quality and operations management (MPQOM), MSc
Publicerad
2023
Författare
Wenäll, Tilda
Leufstedt, Alva
Modellbyggare
Tidskriftstitel
ISSN
Volymtitel
Utgivare
Sammanfattning
The food industry faces several issues as the demand increases with population growth, and
current production is not sufficient to cover global nutrition needs. Blue foods could reduce the
overall environmental pressure from food production since it requires significantly less fresh
water and land use than terrestrial crops. Currently, oceans provide only 2% of global food
production, highlighting the untapped potential of blue foods, including seaweed. To increase
the use of seaweed in both food and non-food applications, it could be processed in
biorefineries to produce a wide range of products. Nordic SeaFarm, a Swedish seaweed farmer,
wishes to explore these possibilities. This thesis aims to investigate where, and how, Nordic
SeaFarm could position itself in the emerging value chain of products from seaweed
biorefineries. This will be accomplished through an exploration of the technical and
organisational resources within the resource network, including an analysis of the necessary
collaborations, and an examination of the current situation.
An abductive approach was taken for this qualitative study, where seven interviews with
European biorefineries were conducted. Furthermore, two interviews with food product
developers were held as they are the next key actors in the food value chain. The study shows
that the European seaweed industry faces several challenges that Nordic SeaFarm has to
consider. These challenges include the scarcity of biomass, the premium price of European
biomass, the ambiguity of the concept of sustainability, and the vast investments and costs
associated with the development and operation of a biorefinery. While some believe that
European seaweed cultivation will scale up as demand increases, the course of action for
European biorefineries working with cultivated seaweed remains uncertain if it does not scale
sufficiently or if large-scale offshore cultivation proves to be complicated.
Findings from the interviews show that most biorefineries primarily focus on high-value
compounds for the pharmaceutical and cosmetics industries, to ensure viable business cases.
However, the interviews indicate that there might be untapped potential in the side streams,
which could possibly be further developed into food products. Based on the findings from the
interviews three potential roles a seaweed farmer can undertake in the upstream value chain
were explored. These roles are as a contractor-based supplier of seaweed, a consolidator of
seaweed, or as a member of a seaweed cooperative. In addition, the possibility of undertaking
a downstream role as a coordinator of the valorisation of side stream for food production is also
analysed. These were later problematised in terms of feasibility and chronology, leading up to
the recommendation of a combination of contractor-based collaboration with biorefineries and
research partnerships to secure potential customers and the company’s position in the value
chain. The recommendation further includes testing and developing food products from the
biorefinery side streams.
Beskrivning
Ämne/nyckelord
Seaweed , biorefinery , resource network , network collaborations , value chain , business relationships , emerging industry