A Scarborough business founded by former fisherman Captain Wave Crookes has landed six figure funding to expand its seaweed and shellfish cultivation project.
Seagrown was launched in 2018 by former Royal Navy man Captain Crookes and marine scientist professor Laura Robinson, who met while working on the British Antarctic Survey. Their business operates a 25-hectare site off the coast of Scarborough and has successfully trialled its methods with windfarm operators as well as a £2.8m Government demonstration project which found its technology could ‘transform the seaweed industry’.
It sells a range of seaweed products and runs a Plant a Tree in the Sea scheme to help corporate clients meet sustainability goals. Seagrown is eyeing work with ports, offshore operators and utility companies who want to address their impact on the environment.
Seagrown has worked with the two biggest windfarm operators, Orsted and RWE, and last year won an international biodiversity competition run by RWE. The latest project, as part of a biomass programme run by the Department of Energy and Net Zero, found that Seagrown’s technology could transform seaweed production from a cottage industry, positioning the Ƶ to lead the way in Europe and develop a national ‘blue carbon’ capability.
A six-figure loan from , which is managed by Mercia Debt as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II (NPIF II), is now intended to help the business grow. That could mean its current team of 16, doubles in size in the next two years.
Captain Crookes, founder and operations director, said: “As someone from a fishing family who has spent their life on the water, I have been saddened to see the state the oceans are in. Laura and I decided to dedicate our talents and experience to tackling this crisis. With the Kelpedo system now tried and tested and backed by scientific data, it is exciting to be able to roll it out to the wider world.”
Andy Clough of Mercia Debt added:“There has been growing interest in cultivating seaweed in recent years as businesses start to recognise the benefits. Seagrown’s unique system could drive rapid uptake by enabling cultivation at scale. The funding will help the company to take on new commercial contracts and establish itself as a key player in the Ƶ’s ‘blue economy’.”
Lizzy Upton, senior investment manager at the British Business Bank, said: “SeaGrown is a great example of how innovative Northern businesses are leading the way in developing sustainable technologies that benefit both the economy and the environment. This is the type of ambitious business we aim to support through the Norhern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, and I look forward to seeing what is next for them.”
