June 30, 2024
Hello from Ketchikan, Alaska! We have some great updates to share with you this month, but first, make sure you're signed up for our emails by clicking here!
Kelp Processing Tours:
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Pacific Kelp Co. founders John and Nick visiting the Ocean's Balance kelp processing center in Maine
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As we get ready to set up our own kelp processing facilities in Ketchikan, we've been traveling around the world learning from those who are already processing large quantities of kelp. From Korea to Kodiak and now to Maine, we are taking best practices from around the globe and applying them as we set up our facility.
In May, we attended a workshop hosted by Greenwave, which focused on the first stages of kelp processing, namely particle size reduction. Particle size reduction helps to improve the efficiency of later processing steps like dehydration. A few weeks ago, we were lucky enough to tour the Ocean's Balance kelp processing facility in Maine, where they host one of the largest kelp dehydrators in the world and are processing significant quantities of kelp.
Ocean's Balance is a leading kelp processor located in Maine working with both kelp from local farmers as well as their own farms. We learned a ton about the dehydration process and greatly appreciate the time that the Ocean's Balance team gave us!
Upcoming Processing Trials in Ketchikan:
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We're working with Cape Fox Corporation, a native corporation that represents the Tlingit Alaska Natives from the Village of Saxman, to run kelp processing trials in one of their facilities in July and August. We'll be using some of the learnings from the last few months to test our dry processing line at pilot-scale.
We'll use this trial to refine our processes: from harvesting and transportation to dehydration and the manufacturing of dried kelp products. The learnings from this pilot trial will help us to efficiently scale our processing capabilities, allowing us to process kelp from our own farm and from other farms in the region, unlocking new markets for Alaskan kelp.
We are excited to get our processing line ready so we can start servicing our customers and introducing more of the world to the benefits of Alaskan Giant Kelp!
Summer in Ketchikan:
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The first few months living in Ketchikan were great... but nothing compares to summers in Ketchikan! We've been taking ample advantage of the great weather we've had this month by getting outside as much as possible! We're still working to catch our first salmon, but hopefully that will be in next month's update!
Side note: unfortunately, while you can see all of downtown Ketchikan, you cannot quite see our farm site from the top of Deer Mountain!
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Best,
Pacific Kelp Co. Team
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