"K-Seaweed" Targets Global Market Leadership... Expanding Production Base for Next Year's Seaweed

Jeonnam Province will implement various support policies next year, including expanding production infrastructure for seaweed to promote the "Kim-Globalization" initiative. The photo shows the Haenam seaweed land seedling farm. Provided by Jeonnam Province.

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Jeonnam Province is making every effort to support the production of seaweed for 2026 by establishing an eco-friendly aquaculture foundation for "K-Seaweed" and aiming to secure a leading position in the global market.

According to Jeonnam Province on October 8, due to the increase in "K-Seaweed" exports and favorable harvest conditions, the production value of seaweed for 2025 reached a record high of 840.4 billion won. For the 2026 harvest, the province plans to install 920,000 seaweed frames across 65,000 hectares of aquaculture farms, targeting a production volume of approximately 500,000 tons to ensure stable supply.

Currently, aquaculture farms are busy with the seeding process, where seaweed spores are attached to nets. As of the end of September, about 40% of the planned seeding has been completed, and the work is expected to be finished by mid-October. The first harvest of seaweed this year is anticipated to begin around October 25, about five days earlier than last year.

To resolve a 40-year-long wish of seaweed farmers, Jeonnam Province has, over the past three years since 2022, developed a new seaweed activation agent and completed large-scale field tests. The province has also proposed an amendment to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries’ notification to enable supply to aquaculture farms, and related procedures such as collecting opinions are currently underway.

Jeonnam Province is also conducting a research project with the Seoul National University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation to foster the seaweed industry as a national strategic industry. Through this project, the province aims to secure the feasibility of developing the seaweed industry as a national strategic sector and to establish systematic and concrete strategies for the "K-Seaweed" industrial cluster, including the establishment of the National Seaweed Industry Promotion Institute and an international export complex, to secure leadership in the global market.

To support the production of high-quality seaweed, Jeonnam Province is investing 53 billion won in land-based seeding and freezing facilities, certified buoys, aquaculture automation equipment, and support for eco-friendly organic aquaculture certification.

Jeon Changwoo, Director of the Eco-Friendly Fisheries Division of Jeonnam Province, stated, "We hope that a large volume of high-quality seaweed will be produced this year, increasing the income of fishing households and revitalizing the fishing village economy. We will steadily establish a full-cycle system connecting production, processing, distribution, and export to lead the domestic seaweed industry."

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