A project that aims to use kelp extracts to manage nutrients more efficiently is being led by Algapelago Marine Ltd in collaboration with project partners The James Hutton Institute, Atlantic Mariculture Ltd, and the UK Agri-Tech Centre, and funded by Innovate UK.
Through the application of seaweed biostimulants under reduced mineral fertiliser application, this project aims to confirm new nutrient management options through stimulating plant responses and promoting healthy soil biology.
Due to their uniquely rich profile of fibres, micronutrients and bioactive components, seaweed supplements enhance the growth of specific microbiota in soil, which leads to a cascade of biological functions with beneficial impacts for productivity, resistance to abiotic stress, and resistance to pathogens. It is therefore hoped that the use of seaweed biostimulants will help transition to more sustainable and resilient farming systems and unlock further research opportunities around nutrient-use efficiency.
Previous work has shown that seaweed extract application improves microbial diversity and community structure and benefits crop yield and quality, but the new project is using cultivated sugar kelp, a new species for the seaweed extract industry with a unique biochemical profile. The extracts are then produced using a novel low-energy fermentation and extraction process.
The project will also explore yield responses under reduced nitrate and phosphate conditions and correlate improved uptake of nitrogen and phosphorus under fertiliser limitation with impacts on microbial diversity and community structure.
Luke Ansell, head of operations at Algapelago Marine Ltd, commented, “The project aims to address data gaps and build the evidence case for the role of cultivated seaweed extracts in modern crop production and will test the hypothesis that sugar kelp extracts can improve plant nutrient-use efficiency here in the UK.”
Gordon McDougall, research leader at the James Hutton Institute, added, “We are delighted to bring our expertise in seaweed biochemistry, biostimulants, and crop trials to this important research project. Understanding how these novel low energy seaweed extracts can reduce inputs of nitrogen and phosphate fertilisers, maintain or improve crop yield whilst altering the soil microbiota, could provide new approaches for greener agriculture”.
