A three year project is currently underway that focuses on extracting value from the invasive seaweed, Undaria pinnatifida, to sustain control programmes across Aotearoa, New Zealand. To address this, the team, led by Chris Hepburn, willl merge fine-scale maps of Undaria biomass and information on key drivers of bioactive concentration (e.g. temperature, light) to build a Bioactive Forecast Model (BFM) that directs harvest and processing pathways. In parallel, the team will optimise and apply green extraction technology to determine bioactive concentration to inform predictions, and develop technology to extract bioactives within regionally distributed research and bioactive extraction hubs. This project will inform and equip specialist Ngāi Tahu Undaria control divers by providing fine scale maps of high value resources and green bioactive extraction technology, allowing value to remain in the small coastal communities that surround the Undaria resources.

Undaria Pinnatifida