April 2026 Updates
Hello from Ketchikan, Alaska! We have some great updates from Pacific Kelp Company to share with you this month, but first, make sure you're signed up for our emails by clicking here.
We've Received $40,000 for More Agricultural Product Research
We're happy to announce that the Alaska Mariculture Cluster has awarded us an additional $40,000 on top of the almost $500,000 that we were awarded in 2025 as part of the Kelp Agricultural Product Development Program.
This supplemental grant will fund kelp product efficacy testing on tomatoes, potatoes, and peppers in California.
Coordinated in partnership with GreenWave and the Chugach Regional Resource Commission, we're testing three Alaskan kelp biostimulant products across the trio of crops.
In addition to the positive effects we hope to see on plant yield, this trial will also stress the crops by withholding 25% of normal nutrient and water levels to show how our products help plants handle stressful conditions.
We're grateful to our partners for this collaboration and thank the Alaska Mariculture Cluster for its support. The goal for this funding is simple: show that Alaskan kelp makes farming more profitable and more sustainable.
A Look Ahead: Our 2026 Field Trial Lineup
Beyond the California vegetable trials, we have an ambitious slate of commercial trials kicking off this year.
On the specialty-crop side, we're running trials on strawberries, blueberries, and pistachios—three crops where an improvement in fruit or nut quality can make a significant impact on a grower's bottom line.
Partnering with a large agricultural distributor in the Pacific Northwest, we've already kicked off two major trials: 150 acres of potatoes and 150 acres of onions.
Perhaps most exciting, we're taking our first step into commodity row crops, with two 25-acre soybean trials starting in the next few weeks.
This year's field trial program spans a range of crops and geographies and will help us demonstrate that KelpEdge™ is an essential tool for farmers across the country.
Production Update
Operations are ramping up here in Ketchikan as we increase production of KelpEdge™ to support growing demand from our trial partners and commercial customers.
Stay tuned for more updates on enhancements we're making to our production efficiency in the months to come.
