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| A Danish delegation takes a photo with their Korean partners on a joint project on seaweed facilitated by Innovation Centre Denmark (ICDK) Seoul, March 8. Courtesy of ICDK Seoul |
By Kwon Mee-yoo
In a bid to exert the combined strengths of Denmark's research and development (R&D) community and Korea's robust seaweed industry, the Innovation Centre Denmark (ICDK) Seoul, facilitated a collaboration focusing on the diverse opportunities of seaweed.
The partnership aims to pioneer innovative uses of seaweed biomass across various sectors, including pharma, food, industry and feed, marking a substantial step towards global sustainability.
The Danish-Korea Blue Biocluster Alliance, a collaboration initiated in 2022 through an R&D network grant from the Danish government, was born from a concerted effort by the ICDK to find a suitable field of cooperation between Korea and Denmark.
The choice of seaweed as the focus of collaboration was no accident. It was guided by Korea's strength in the seaweed industry and market and Denmark's growing interest in seaweed research and innovation. The untapped potential of marine ecosystems and organisms in both nations, still largely unexplored and underutilized, unveiled a new horizon for scientific exploration and innovation.
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| Brochures of a joint project on seaweed between Denmark and Korea, facilitated by Innovation Centre Denmark (ICDK) Seoul, are shown in this undated photo. Courtesy of ICDK Seoul |
A series of virtual workshops and a roundtable were held, laying down the foundation of the partnership. A delegation visit further cemented the ties, with representatives from Korea presenting their strengths at the Nordic seaweed conference attended by over 100 Nordic and European researchers and innovators.
A return delegation to Korea in March 2023, coinciding with the Danish food minister's visit, signaled the intent to further bilateral collaboration in the green sustainable food agenda. The Danish delegation paid a visit to Wando Island off Korea's southwest coast to investigate spawning techniques and sensory aspects of seaweed, such as taste, texture, smell and nutritional quality, with the aim of understanding how it can be processed and used in various products.
This strategic alliance not only emphasizes the commercial uses of seaweed but also represents a unified stance toward environmental sustainability and climate change mitigation. As both nations have extensive and diverse marine ecosystems, the collaboration has unlocked new horizons in marine biotechnology, focusing on seaweeds.
The collaboration is now looking forward to a "2.0" version of the Danish-Korean network, including the respective food clusters to engage entrepreneurs and innovative companies in joint activities.
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