Building Macrocystis farming communities in Chile
with Huiro Regenerativo and IPMAPY
While cultivation technology has been progressing, it’s confronting to see many farmers still struggling to sell their harvest in Europe. Interestingly, a professional processing industry is already established in Chile, supplied by wild harvesting (96%). We work with IPMAPY in the project Huiro Regenerativo to train local farmers and prove that seaweed farming can be a sustainable business case in the Los Lagos region.
The partnership combines local knowledge, infrastructure, and resources from Chile with Hortimare’s specialized expertise in seaweed domestication and production scaling. Huiro Regenerativo has successfully cultivated their own seed and farmed their produce, but they need further optimisation and support, which led to this partnership.
The journey began in December 2023 when the Hortimare team visited Huiro Regenerativo after the Dutch Seaweed Innovation mission organised by RVO. Following frequent online meetings, Joshua Masel provided hands-on support in February, resulting in the establishment of a standardised hatchery within two months.
Huiro Regenerativo is set to inoculate the first spools in their new facility in mid-May after successfully rearing another batch in their older facility. Maria Jose de la Fuente, founder and director of operations, recently visited Hortimare for finalising technical infrastructure and on-site training. The Hortimare team and Maria Jose spent the week together strengthening the partnership and discussing all avenues to see the project succeed. In the coming weeks Hortimare will send further colleagues to continue the onsite support, and will welcome new employees of Huiro Regenerativo to the Netherlands where further training can take place
We’re excited to support Huiro’s mission to develop a regenerative seaweed industry in South America and are grateful to have been chosen as a partner for this innovative project. Our strong connection, despite geographical differences, stems from our shared missions. Hortimare’s success relies on our farmers’ success.
