Methane-busting seaweed a finalist for international Earthshot Prize
One of Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington’s nominees for the Earthshot Prize, Sea Forest Ltd, is one of fifteen finalists in the running for one of five £1,000,000 (NZ$1.9m) prizes.
The Earthshot Prize is an independent charity founded by Prince William, with the mission to find and grow extraordinary solutions that will repair our planet. It awards five prizes of £1,000,000 each year to projects that highlight human ingenuity, drive change, and inspire collective action. The fifteen finalists have been selected from a pool of more than a thousand nominations.
As a thought leader in sustainability, the University is one of only three official nominators from Aotearoa New Zealand for the international Earthshot Prize.
Sea Forest Ltd is a Tasmanian-based company that cultivates a type of red seaweed called asparagopsis, which when introduced into a ruminant’s diet reduces the amount of methane emitted from the animal.
Methane emissions from the world’s two billion sheep and cows are the largest source of greenhouse gases in the agricultural sector, and researchers at the CSIRO and James Cook University have shown that when livestock eat the asparagopsis, methane emissions are reduced by up to 98%.
"Our journey has been one which has involved taking some really exciting Australasian science and trying to get it a scale that can create real impact,” says Sea Forest co-founder Sam Elsom. "To have that work recognised on a global stage through the Earthshot is really exciting."
The Sea Forest team is the first in the world to cultivate asparagopsis at a commercial scale. The company has been supplying the feed supplement to farmers across Australia and aims to feed around two million head of cattle.
The Earthshot Prize supports all fifteen finalists each year to accelerate their ideas, with a year of dedicated support, networking, and partnership opportunities, as well as the chance to win one of the £1,000,000 prizes.
“Earthshot is far more than a prize, but rather a support team to assist us in scaling our solution,” says Elsom. “It’s been a very worthwhile process.”
Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony in Singapore in November 2023.