About this event
When Canada and Scotland team up over seaweed, big things happen. This partnership is more than just a cross-border handshake — it’s a deep dive into business development, ocean innovation, and sustainable product creation that benefits both sides of the Atlantic. At the heart of this collaboration is a shared belief: macro and microalgae aren’t just marine marvels — they’re future-making ingredients. From skincare actives to next-gen bioplastics, from fashion fibers to functional foods, seaweed is proving it can do it all. And as demand for sustainable, traceable, and planet-friendly materials continues to rise, both countries are riding the wave together.
Leading the Canadian delegation is the Pacific Seaweed Association, headed by its dynamic founder Mark Smith, who will accompany a group of innovative Canadian companies to Oban. Together, they’ll showcase Canada’s growing leadership in seaweed-based innovation from ingredient development to regenerative aquaculture technologies. This is a chance to see Canadian creativity and scientific expertise in action, and to spark new cross-border partnerships rooted in the blue economy. Oban, backed by the powerhouse that is SAMS (Scottish Association for Marine Science), is quickly making a name for itself as a global hotspot for aquaculture innovation. This event will put that visibility into overdrive, giving Scotland’s west coast the spotlight it deserves.
But this isn’t just about science. It’s about sparking real, meaningful industry collaboration. Throughout the event, participants will rub shoulders with biotech brains, beauty brand builders, algae entrepreneurs, and researchers —all ready to team up, trade ideas, and co-create the next big thing in blue innovation. These conversations? They’re where the magic happens — leading to fresh products, bold research directions, and scalable solutions that go beyond the lab.
Beauty By The Sea – Event Structure
Day 1: The Science of Seaweed
Morning Session
9:00 AM – 9:30 AM – Registration & Welcome Coffee Informal networking and refreshments as participants arrive.
9:30 AM – 10:00 AM – Opening Remarks Welcome speeches from regional partners
Nick Owens, Director of SAMS
Christine Rolins - Blue Economy Specialist in Highlands and Islands Enterprise
Frazer Coupland, CEO of West Highlands Chamber of Commerce
10:00 AM – 10:15 AM – Special Address from an Impact Investor A short insight into why regenerative aquaculture and seaweed innovation are rising stars in the world of sustainable investing.
10:15 AM – 11:00 AM – Notpla - Cecile Roques Seaweed-Powered Bioplastics: Rethinking Packaging from the Ocean Up
11:00 AM – 11:45 AM – Oceanium - Neil Waslidge
Unlocking the Potential of Seaweed-Derived Ingredients for Wellness & Skincare. OCEANIUM is a UK-based, purpose-led biotech company harnessing the power of sustainably farmed seaweed to create high-performance, planet-friendly ingredients for health, beauty, food, and materials. Using proprietary green and circular biorefinery technology, OCEANIUM extracts maximum value from cultivated Saccharina latissima (sugar kelp), producing a portfolio of science-backed, bioactive ingredients. This includes OCEAN ACTIVES® C+, a potent and natural extract which is clinically proven to reduce skin redness by 96%, whilst promoting healthy microbiome.
11:45 AM – 12:30 PM – Policy to Prototype: Leveraging Sustainable Blue Economy Calls for Grant-Backed Pilots. Dr. Ambrosio Pagaran
EU blue-economy calls now fund robotic recirculating aquaculture pilots and offshore algae systems. MediSea outlines a step-by-step “grant + corporate match” pathway that lets new hardware teams test at scale while de-risking costs for industrial partners.
12:30 PM – 1:30 PM – Networking Lunch
A seasonal lunch showcasing Scottish produce and seaweed-inspired dishes. During this lunch session we will stream the documentary - Seaweed Stories thanks to our partners at the Lonely Whale. Presented by Lonely Whale in association with Re:wild. Narrated by Forest Whitaker, Seaweed Stories is a vibrant, global look at the wonders of seaweed, and some of the extraordinary stories and characters whose lives have been entangled by this often overlooked marine plant which may hold answers to some of humanity's biggest challenges. Seaweed Stories includes insights from a Silicon Valley startup creating plastic alternatives from macroalgae, to the Indigenous Shinnecock Kelp Farmers using seaweed to prove their sovereign right to coastal land, and a scientist in South Korea supporting seaweeds' sexual reproduction to create new species that can withstand the effects of a changing climate.
Afternoon Presentations & Research Tour
1:30 PM – 2:15 PM – 7 Fathoms - Courtney Howell The Healing Power of Seaweed: Running a Marine-Based Beauty Brand
2:15 PM – 3:00 PM – The importance of Seaweed Farming - Rhianna Rees
Seaweed farming is one of the most sustainable forms of aquaculture on the planet. It requires no freshwater, no fertilizers, and no arable land — yet it yields nutrient-rich biomass that can be used in everything from food and cosmetics to bioplastics and pharmaceuticals. Beyond its commercial value, seaweed plays a powerful environmental role: it absorbs carbon, reduces ocean acidification, and supports marine biodiversity.
3:00 PM – 4:00 PM – Guided Tour of SAMS & CCAP A behind-the-scenes tour of SAMS research facilities and the Culture Collection of Algae and Protozoa (CCAP), showcasing live cultivation, extraction, and marine biotechnology labs.
Evening Session
5:00 PM – 6:00 PM – Whiskey Distillery Tour A cultural visit to a traditional Oban distillery — the perfect end to a day of science and sea air.
8:00 PM – 10:00 PM – Networking Dinner A hosted evening meal featuring locally sourced food, relaxed discussion, and a celebration of cross-border collaboration.
Day 2: The Business of Seaweed
Morning Session
9:00 AM – 9:45 AM – The Business of Seaweed - Margarita Sidorova The Global Seaweed Economy: Business Models, Trends & Barriers to Scale A full briefing on the business landscape, export opportunities, investment flows, and product development goals for business success.
9:45 AM – 10:10 AM – Pacific Seaweed Industry Association - Mark Smith Strengthening the North American Seaweed Supply Chain
10:10 AM – 10:35 AM – Selling Your Seaweed Solution Through Storytelling- Natalie Gilson, CEO & Co-owner, Pisces & Amanda Horn, Founder, Shower Thoughts™
Fireside Chat + Brand Therapy
From sea to skin, your seaweed story should flow through every layer of your value chain. But too often, the power of seaweed gets lost in fragmented messaging, greenwashed claims, or science-heavy language that doesn’t resonate.
In this fireside chat and live brand therapy session, we’ll explore how to build a story-based strategy that supports responsible production, consumption, and promotion. Together, we’ll uncover the tools to align storytelling from farmer to formulator to final customer — grounding your message in ocean health, place-based narratives, and authentic sustainability.
10:35 AM – 11:00 AM – Obtaining functional ingredients from Seaweed using supercritical CO - Speaker - Ray Marriott
The presentation will cover the molecules we can expect to obtain from diverse seaweed species, typical yields and composition of extracts and also an economic analysis based on process scale and the utilisation of other components particularly the polysaccharide fraction. I will aim for a 30 minute presentation including time for questions.
11:15 AM – 12:00 PM – Shaelynne Bood -Wild harvesting Giant Kelp on the BC coast
Shaelynne Bood is a second-generation wild kelp harvester from northern Vancouver Island. Working in the traditional waters of the Kwakiutl people she harvests Macrocystis Pyrifera entirely by hand from small vessels, she is continuing the harvest her father began in 1998. Guided by science through biomass and biologist studies, and traditional stewardship, they ensure the kelp continues thriving year after year.
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM – Business Lunch & Delegation Networking
A curated lunch with seating arranged by interest area — connect directly with potential partners, funders, and collaborators.
Afternoon Session
1:00 PM – 1:45 PM – SAMS Enterprise - Daniel Carcajona
Translating Marine Science into Commercial Success
1:45 PM – 2:30 PM – BBIA, Dr Jen Vanderhoven, FRSC
Beauty and the Bioeconomy: A perspective on the UK policy and regulatory landscape for bio-based chemicals and materialsOpportunities in the UK in the Bio Economy and its importance.
At the BBIA we are focused on accelerating the adoption of bio-based, biodegradable, and compostable chemicals and materials in the UK, in order to reduce our reliance on fossil resources and create a sustainable circular economy. https://bbia.org.uk/
2:30 PM – 4:00 PM – Collaboration Roundtables & Closing Remarks Facilitated roundtable discussions focused on:
Overcoming scale-up bottlenecks
Creating shared infrastructure
Commercializing marine-based innovation
Building a transatlantic seaweed network
Final remarks and a look ahead to future initiatives.