I didn’t set out to become a kelp farmer.
As a marine biologist, I’ve spent most of my career focused on animals—everything from seahorses to large oceanic fish. Kelp was always there in the background, but I didn’t think of it as the main character.
That’s changed.
Over the past few years, I’ve come to see kelp differently—not just as seaweed, but as something with real potential to support both ocean health and human health. That shift is what led me from research and teaching into starting something of my own.
In 2021, my co-founder Krista and I started a kelp farm here in southern Maine.
The more I learned about kelp, the more fascinated I became.
At the same time, I was going through some major life changes. And for reasons I couldn’t fully explain then, the idea of starting a kelp farm was something I held onto.
We didn’t have a clear plan. We didn’t even know what we would do with the kelp.
We just wanted to get our hands in the water—to learn the process, to understand the organism, and to see what it actually meant to grow something regeneratively in the ocean.
What drew me in wasn’t just my love of the ocean—it was how kelp behaves within it.
Kelp is a type of seaweed, and there are thousands of seaweed species around the world. Many are harvested from the wild. Farming kelp, though, is different. It’s intentional. Instead of taking from an existing ecosystem, you’re growing something that can actively support it.
When we started, I knew very little about how to actually farm kelp. The process is surprisingly simple: kelp seedlings are grown in a hatchery, then wound onto ropes that are suspended a few feet below the ocean’s surface. Through the winter, it grows.
We had no idea what to expect.
The first time we pulled our harvest out of the water—long, golden-brown blades, ruffled and wider than the palm of my hand—I was hooked.
By spring, those tiny seedlings have transformed into long, ruffled blades—sometimes reaching up to 15 feet.
It still surprises me.
Part of what makes kelp so compelling is how little it asks for. It doesn’t require freshwater, fertilizer, or land. It’s adapted to thrive in a dynamic, often harsh environment—fluctuating temperatures, salinity, and constant exposure to the elements.
In response, it produces compounds that help protect it as it grows. Those same compounds—antioxidants, minerals, and other bioactives—are part of what make kelp so interesting beyond the ocean.
It’s also incredibly efficient. Kelp grows quickly—faster than land plants—and absorbs carbon as it does. By doing so, kelp can help reduce ocean acidification, support marine habitats, and even protect our shorelines.
All of that, from something that grows quietly just below the surface.
These days, my work looks very different than it used to. It’s more physical, more seasonal, and more connected to a specific place.
And somewhere along the way, it started to make sense to bring kelp into skincare.
But at the core of it, this work isn’t really about products.
It’s about paying attention to what already works in nature—and recognizing the incredible potential in a resource we’ve long overlooked.
That’s what keeps me coming back to the water, and to the kelp growing just below the surface.