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WHAT IS STAR-FISH AND WHY IT MATTERS |
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| Fisheries across the Caribbean are highly dependent on fossil fuels, making them vulnerable to rising energy costs and climate risks. STAR-Fish seeks to demonstrate that: | ||
Renewable energy reduces operational costs Energy-efficient technologies improve productivity Inclusive approaches strengthen long-term resilience |
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PROJECT FOCUS AREAS |

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PROJECT PROFILE |
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Sustainable Technologies for Adaptation and Resilience in Fisheries - STAR-Fish Donor-funded by Global Affairs Canada |
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The STAR-Fish Project seeks to demonstrate that energy costs can be substantially reduced by transitioning to renewable energy technologies. The project intends to ultimately increase clean energy transition in Caribbean fisheries and aquaculture by applying a gender-responsive approach to its interventions, as it supports the certification of low carbon or carbon neutral fisheries in the region and facilitates technical collaboration and knowledge exchange. The STAR-Fish Project is pivotal for the advancement of the CRFM’s 2022-2030 Strategic Plan. It particularly supports the attainment of Strategic Goal 4 (Section 4.1c), which envisions “Increased use of renewable energy and energy efficient harvesting, processing, and cold storage systems, and reduction of the region’s reliance on fossil fuels in fisheries and aquaculture.” The overall objective of STAR-fish is to enhance sustainable economic growth through building (or improving) resiliency of the Caribbean fisheries sector |

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PROJECT COUNTRIES |
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OUR TEAM |

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CONTENT AND RESOURCES
Pranaya Kumar Parida1, June Masters1 and Sandra Grant2
Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines1
Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism, Belize2
The mission of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism is “to promote and facilitate the responsible utilization of the region's fisheries and other aquatic resources for the economic and social benefits of the current and future population of the region.” The sector’s aim is to provide employment and food security for the people of the region. Analysis and validation of the trends based on data in the CRFM Statistics and Information Reports for 2002 to 2022 was conducted. A technical and stakeholder assessment was carried out to investigate the trends observed. The data revealed that the marine capture production, since 2018, has steadily declined, while only eight CRFM Member States were actively involved in aquaculture production. Regarding trade in fish, imports have steadily increased both in value and weight; and exports have not kept up with imports. Many aspects of the fisheries have changed, by issues such as overfishing, climate change, ghost fishing, irresponsible fish farming, habitat destruction, land-based pollution and IUU fishing. However, the fisheries and aquaculture sectors in the region continue to provide food and nutrition security for small-scale fishers and the people of the Caribbean region.
HOW TO CITE: Parida, P.K., J. Masters and S. Grant, 2026. Analysis of Trends in Production, Fleet, Trade and Economic Contribution of the Fisheries and Aquaculture in CRFM Member States. Contribution 3.2, p107-119 IN CRFM, 2026. Volume I: Technical Papers. Presented at the CRFM 20th Anniversary Scientific Conference, 28-31 August 2023. CRFM Special Publication No. 37, CRFM Secretariat https://www.crfm.int/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=907
Download CRFM Special Publication No. 37:
Proceedings of the CRFM 20th Anniversary Scientific Conference
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Milton O. Haughton
CRFM Secretariat, Princess Margaret Dr., PO Box 642, Belize City, Belize
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The CRFM was legally established in 2002 and officially launched in March 2003 by CARICOM States as a regional fisheries body to promote sustainable use of the living marine and other aquatic resources within their jurisdiction by the development, efficient management and conservation of such resources. This paper provides a brief overview and analysis of the development of the legal and policy framework and regional cooperation among the CRFM Member States to achieve sustainable use of the marine living resources over the past 20 years.
The 2002 Agreement Establishing the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism is a framework treaty which sets out the objectives and basic principles, standards, and rules for achieving the purpose for which the organization was established. It has over the past 20 years been strengthened and enhanced by several regional policy documents such as the Castries Declaration on Illegal, Unreported and Unregulated Fishing, the Caribbean Community Common Fisheries Policy, the St. George’s Declaration on Conservation, Management and Sustainable Use of the Caribbean Spiny Lobster (Panulirus argus), and various Ministerial Resolutions aimed at addressing general and specific technical issues as well as policies aimed at improving general governance and decision-making processes among the participating countries.
HOW TO CITE: Haughton, M.O., 2026. Review of the Legal and Policy Framework for Sustainable Use of the Living Marine Resources of the CRFM Member States [Abstract]. Contribution 2.2, p55 IN CRFM, 2026. Volume I: Technical Papers. Presented at the CRFM 20th Anniversary Scientific Conference, 28-31 August 2023. CRFM Special Publication No. 37, CRFM Secretariat https://www.crfm.int/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=900
Download CRFM Special Publication No. 37:
Proceedings of the CRFM 20th Anniversary Scientific Conference
KEY LINKS
Scientific Conference Home Page
Scientific Conference Proceedings Page
Explore all 20th Anniversary Scientific Papers
NOTE
If you have challenges accessing or downloading documents in this series, please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , copied to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , or call us at +501-223-4443. Some browsers do not properly load Google Drive documents, so if you have challenges accessing the PowerPoint slides or the full special publication, try switching to another browser such as Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge.
Belize City, Belize, 9 October 2025 (CRFM)— The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM) sealed its first bilateral accord with the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) on Tuesday, September 30, 2025. The signing was executed during the Sixteenth Special Meeting of the CRFM Ministerial Council, held in Saint Kitts and Nevis during Caribbean Week of Agriculture (CWA)—an annual event convened by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat.
The signatories of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) are Dr. Marc Williams, Executive Director of the CRFM Secretariat, and H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules, Director General of the OECS. Dr. Williams hails the MoU as a pivotal instrument for solidifying and strengthening the established relationship between the CRFM and the OECS—8 of whose members are also members of the CRFM. These countries are Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.


H.E. Dr. Didacus Jules, Director General of the OECS (left), with Dr. Marc Williams, Executive Director of the CRFM Secretariat, at the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding during CWA 2025
Dr. Williams said: “For many years, the CRFM and the OECS have collaborated on initiatives to support their respective Member States… The informal relationship has worked well for both the CRFM and the OECS, but there is a need to establish official relations. As a result, the signing of the MoU will initiate a collaboration that will guide and formalize cooperation between the CRFM and the OECS for the execution of related and relevant activities in specific areas of fisheries-related matters.”
Dr. Jules said that the MoU, which spans 2025 to 2028, “represents bringing the collaboration between the OECS and the CRFM to a whole new level. It covers governance and management of fisheries, providing support for further integration in the Blue Economy sector... building resilience, harmonization of safety at sea programs, insurance products for fishers, making available information and guidance to support fisheries research, and joint research initiatives, economic development for fisherfolk and communities... focusing on empowerment of youth and women in the fisheries value chain, agriculture and fisheries linkages, trade markets and business development.”
On September 9, 2025, the CRFM also signed an MoU with the University of the West Indies. On that occasion, Dr. Williams signed for the CRFM, while Professor Carl Justin Robinson, Campus Principal of the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus, based in Antigua and Barbuda, signed on behalf of UWI.

The CRFM (inaugurated in 2003) and the OECS (established in 1981) strengthen their collaboration with signing of a new MoU.
Dr. Williams commented that the 5-year MoU between the CRFM and UWI, which will be executed through the UWI Five Island Campus in Antigua and Barbuda, will foster the establishment of a mutually beneficial relationship for educational and academic collaboration in the areas of mutual interest. These include the blue economy development, marine spatial planning, climate change adaptation, ecosystems resilience, and resource mobilization.
He noted that the Centre of Excellence for Oceanography and the Blue Economy (COBE)—a collaboration between the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, the University of the West Indies, the Commonwealth Secretariat, and the Association of Commonwealth Universities—will support the CRFM in its efforts to advance blue economy development in the Caribbean, in collaboration with regional and global partners.
– END –
Belize City, Belize, 7 October 2025 (CRFM)—Four Caribbean countries—Anguilla, The Bahamas, Dominica, and Montserrat—have signed on to the Agreement Establishing the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), formalizing their membership in the 22-year-old institution, inaugurated in Belize City, Belize, in March 2003. The momentous signing was done en bloc at the Sixteenth Special Meeting of the CRFM Ministerial Council, held during the recently concluded Caribbean Week of Agriculture, hosted by Saint Kitts and Nevis under the auspices of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat.
Dr. Marc Williams, Executive Director of the CRFM Secretariat, welcomed the decisive move by the 4 Caribbean countries, which have been actively involved in the CRFM, which is an intergovernmental CARICOM institution.
The heads of delegations who signed the CRFM Agreement on Tuesday, 30 September 2025, on behalf of their respective governments are:

From left to right: Mr. Montez Williams (The Bahamas), Hon. Roland Royer (Dominica), Hon. John P. Osborne (Montserrat), and Hon. Kyle Hodge (Anguilla) sign the CRFM Agreement en bloc
Dr. Williams said: “Currently, there are 17 Member States of the CRFM that have been actively involved in the effective management of the organization. The CRFM prides itself on meeting the needs of its members with the available resources. When attracting resources to support the implementation of our work program and alleviate the financial burden on Member States, the CRFM is frequently asked about its governance framework.”

CRFM Executive Director, Dr. Marc Williams (center), welcomes the decisive move by Anguilla, The Bahamas, Dominica, and Montserrat to formalize their membership in the CRFM
He noted that the CRFM has adopted several key policies to improve its governance framework, including:
The CRFM Executive Director added that the CRFM is making a conscious effort to ensure that its initiatives are gender-sensitive and considerate of the needs of youth and Indigenous peoples.
The CRFM’s 17 Member States are Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Turks and Caicos Islands.
The CRFM’s objectives include the efficient management and sustainable development of marine and other aquatic resources within the jurisdictions of Member States. The CRFM also promotes and establishes cooperative arrangements among interested States for the efficient management of shared, straddling or highly migratory marine and other aquatic resources. Furthermore, it provides technical advisory and consultative services to fisheries authorities of its Member States in the development, management and conservation of their marine and other aquatic resources.
- END -
Belize City, Belize, 8 July 2025 (CRFM)—Fish trade, fisheries-related crimes, and a new environmental and social safeguard policy were among key matters on the agenda of the Ministerial Council of the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), which convened its 19th Regular Meeting virtually on Friday, 4 July 2025.
The Council—which is comprised of Ministers responsible for fisheries, aquaculture, and the blue economy from 17 CRFM Member States—elected Honourable Kyle Hodge, Anguilla’s Minister of Economic Development, Industry, Commerce, Lands, Planning, Water, and Natural Resources, as the new Chair.

The newly elected chair of the CRFM Ministerial Council - Honourable Kyle Hodge of Anguilla
(Photo: Government of Anguilla)
Hon. Hodge said: "we will forge resolutely ahead with... actions aimed at ensuring safe, healthy and fair working and living conditions for over half-million fishers, fish workers, and others employed across our fisheries and aquaculture value chains."
“It is a distinct honor for Anguilla to take up this mantle of Chair from The Turks and Caicos Islands. We have very important work to do over the next year, as we continue to chart the way forward for this regional authority for fisheries and aquaculture across the Caribbean Community,” Minister Hodge said.
“As Ministers responsible for fisheries, we will forge resolutely ahead with promoting the efficient management, conservation and development of the region's living marine resources; developing and maintaining relations with national, sub-regional, regional, and international partners that share our vision and mission for sustainable Caribbean fisheries; as well as supporting actions aimed at ensuring safe, healthy and fair working and living conditions for over half-million fishers, fish workers, and others employed across our fisheries and aquaculture value chains,” he added.
The fisheries sector lies at the heart of a vibrant Caribbean blue economy, which operates within a dynamic international legislative and policy landscape that impacts fish trade in the Caribbean—and by extension both national and regional economies. The Council deliberated upon the implications of the listing of the queen conch under the United States Endangered Species Act (ESA). It also deliberated upon strategies for securing Caribbean trade amid measures arising under the US Marine Mammal Protection Act, the US Import Provisions & High Seas Driftnet Fishing Moratorium Protection Act, the US NOAA Fisheries Seafood Import Monitoring Program, and the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Strategy on Reduction of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from Ships.
The CRFM has played an active role in regional and international initiatives to combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing and other fisheries-related crimes. The Council received updates on the efforts made by the CRFM Secretariat and Member States to address fisheries-related crimes, including efforts through the global Blue Justice Initiative and the Blue Justice Caribbean Hub, based in Jamaica. They also received updates on interventions led by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), as well as a new partnership with the Caribbean Community Implementing Agency for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS) and Auxilium Worldwide.
The Ministers approved the CRFM’s new Environmental and Social Safeguard Policy, which will serve as a guiding framework to manage environmental and social risks and ensure compliance with relevant national, regional, and international safeguard principles and standards.
They also approved the CRFM Strategy for Mainstreaming Biodiversity into Regional Fisheries Management. This document signals the commitment of CRFM Member States to ensure that marine biodiversity and environmental protection are integrated into fisheries management.
The CRFM expresses its sincerest gratitude to Hon. Josephine Olivia Connolly, former Minister of Tourism, Environment, Fisheries and Marine Affairs, Culture and Heritage, Agriculture and Religious Affairs, of The Turks and Caicos Islands, for her stellar service as Chair of the Council for the 2024 Programme Year. We also welcome her successor, Hon. Zhavargo Jolly, who became the new Minister of Tourism, Agriculture, Fisheries & Environment in the Turks and Caicos Islands in February 2025.
The Council is scheduled to hold an in-person meeting in October 2025 at Caribbean Week of Agriculture, to be convened by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat in Saint Kitts and Nevis.
– END –

Belize City, Monday, 25 March 2024 (CRFM)—As the global discussion continues on the elimination of harmful subsidies to the fisheries sector, following the adoption of the World Trade Organization (WTO) Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies at the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference on 17 June 2022, Caribbean countries have been engaged on its far-reaching implications. The WTO Agreement sets new, binding, multilateral rules to curb harmful subsidies, which are a key factor in the widespread overfishing of the world’s fish stocks. Specifically, the Agreement prohibits subsidies for illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing, for utilizing overfished stocks, and for fishing on the unregulated high seas. Implementation of this Agreement will contribute to the fulfillment of United Nations Sustainable Development Goal target 14.6.
The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), the CARICOM Secretariat, the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB), and WTO are co-hosting the 2nd Regional Technical Workshop on the Ratification and Implementation of the Fisheries Subsidies Agreement in CARICOM Member States. The purpose of the event—which is bringing together Caribbean senior Trade and Fisheries officials and representatives from partner organizations in Bridgetown, Barbados, from 25-26 March 2024—is to provide resources and tools to guide ratification and implementation of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies.
The Technical Workshop will also help to chart a way forward for the implementation of the Agreement and strengthen the capacity of national Fisheries and Trade Officials to implement the Agreement. It will also build upon the outcomes of the first technical workshop on Fisheries Subsidies for the Caribbean region held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, 17-19 January 2023. The ongoing second wave of fisheries subsidies negotiations, which seek to develop additional provisions on subsidies that contribute to overcapacity and overfishing, will also be discussed, with reference to the recently held 13th WTO Ministerial Conference in Abu Dhabi.

The Keynote Speaker for the Opening Ceremony will be the Hon. Kerrie Symmonds, M.P., Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and Senior Minister coordinating the Productive Sector, of Barbados. Ambassador Wayne McCook, Assistant Secretary-General, CARICOM Single Market and Trade, and Therese Turner-Jones, Vice-President (Operations)(Ag.) at the Caribbean Development Bank, will also deliver remarks during the Opening Ceremony.
Milton Haughton, Executive Director, CRFM Secretariat, will also present remarks during the Opening Ceremony and later lead off the technical engagement with a presentation on Sustainable Fisheries Management and Development in the Caribbean in the context of fisheries subsidies. Clarisse Morgan, Director - Rules Division at the WTO Secretariat, will deliver remarks as well as an Overview of the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, and Chantal Ononaiwu, Director of External Trade at the CARICOM Secretariat, will present on the second wave of negotiations on Fisheries Subsidies.
As of 12 March 2024, 71 countries had ratified the WTO Fisheries Subsidies Agreement, including five (5) CRFM Member States: Barbados, Belize, Dominica, Haiti, and Saint Lucia. According to the World Trade Organization, for the Agreement to enter into force, two-thirds of WTO members (or 109 countries) must formally accept the Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies by depositing an “instrument of acceptance” with the WTO. Once the Agreement enters into force, it will remain open for acceptance by any other WTO member and will take effect for that new signatory as soon as its instrument of acceptance is deposited with the WTO.
Member States will speak on their internal processes and approaches towards ratification and implementation of the WTO Agreement, including any challenges experienced. International and regional organizations providing technical assistance and capacity building support will provide details on opportunities available to support countries with implementation of the agreement once it has come into force.
This week’s technical workshop also provides a forum for other regional and international organizations, fisherfolk, donors, non-CARICOM countries, and private sector representatives who would be directly or indirectly impacted by the Subsidies Agreement to be engaged on this critical matter.
It is expected that at the conclusion of the 2nd Regional Technical Workshop on the Ratification and Implementation of the WTO Fisheries Subsidies Agreement, Caribbean countries will be better equipped to chart the way forward for the ratification and implementation of the Agreement.
—Ends—
Applications are invited from interested and suitably qualified nationals of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Member States and Associate Members to fill the abovementioned position in the CRFM with assigned duty station in Belize City, Belize. Applicants should be no older than 56 years of age.
The vacancy will remain open until filled. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted to arrange interviews.
To view full details, click here.
The CRFM hereby announces the official close of the Twentieth Anniversary Celebrations! Below is a special message from our Executive Director, Milton Haughton, as we bid farewell to a very memorable year! All the best, from the CRFM Secretariat!


Greenhouse trial with liquid organic fertilizer derived from Sargassum (Photo: M. Haughton, CRFM)
Belize City, Thursday, 7 December 2023 (CRFM)—Groundbreaking work has begun in the Caribbean to produce Sargassum-derived liquid fertilizers or plant growth promoters, as well as an organic compost from processed Sargassum, for eventual incorporation into farmer and grower practices in the Caribbean. The Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism (CRFM), an inter-governmental organization of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and Plant & Food Research, a New Zealand Crown Research Institute, are leading this initiative, under the Sargassum Products for Climate Resilience in the Caribbean Project, a multiyear project funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
This builds on work undertaken by the CRFM since 2015, to address the persistent problem of recurring Sargassum inundations which have been plaguing the region for the past 12 years. Sargassum blooms continue to adversely affect the coastal ecosystems and economic sectors—such as fisheries and tourism—in many Caribbean countries, and clean-up efforts have been costly. Although Sargassum levels have fluctuated from year to year, the general forecast is for continued high levels of blooms and beaching of Sargassum in the foreseeable future. Climate change and nutrient enrichment of the oceans have been identified as major contributing factors to this phenomenon which has been affecting our region since 2011.

Sargassum inundation across a fishing beach on the island of Saint Lucia (Photo: M. Haughton, CRFM)
“Sargassum is a natural marine living resource that has been abundant in our coastal waters. It is often an unpleasant sight on our otherwise picturesque beaches, and rotting Sargassum heaps are hazardous to humans and marine life and environmental health. We must, therefore, find ways to use the Sargassum while neutralizing any potential negative effects of the heavy metals contained therein. The safe and profitable conversion of Sargassum biomass into innovative products to adapt to climate change and bolster economic resilience will also generate tangible economic and social benefits for local communities and present and future generations across the entire Caribbean,” said Milton Haughton, Executive Director of the CRFM.
The first phase of the project, which focused on testing the Sargassum to better understand how to handle and use it safely, was completed in 2022. This second phase, which commenced early 2023, focuses on product and process development. In May 2023, the CRFM concluded agreements with the University of the West Indies (UWI), Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences, Cave Hill Campus, and the Caribbean Agricultural Research and Development Institute (CARDI), which are providing technical support for joint research and surveys to advance the second phase of the project. During this phase, the project will develop and evaluate liquid fertilizers and compost from Sargassum. The hope is that this initiative will help to protect the marine environment and coastal communities, and create jobs and value-added products, while contributing towards the reduction of the region’s high import bill for fertilizers used by farmers.
There are two very important guiding principles of this project. The first is the application of the precautionary principle which ensures that when there is uncertainty and a risk of harm, we should act with care and caution, guided by the best available scientific information. The second principle encompasses the circular economy approach, which ensures total utilization of the Sargassum to eliminate waste and pollution, which is good for people, business, and the environment. The Sargassum harvested from the sea will, therefore, be used to produce fertilizer, and the residue will be utilized to generate other products such as compost and building materials—all of which will be safe and effective for their intended purposes.
UWI has assisted with the process of producing liquid fertilizers from the Sargassum. CARDI has been conducting a survey of farmers to engender a deeper understanding of how they use fertilizers and their interest in a fertilizer product from Sargassum. This knowledge will enhance strategies to promote the uptake of the Sargassum-derived products for use in the agriculture sector.
CARDI is now completing a study to evaluate the performance of the liquid fertilizers developed with the assistance of UWI on crops under greenhouse conditions. Further studies will be conducted in the field with the assistance of farmers.
Since the commencement of the Sargassum Products for Climate Resilience Project in 2020, the CRFM and Plant & Food Research of New Zealand have worked with partners in Barbados, Belize, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic, and with specialized laboratories in the United States and New Zealand, to conduct Sargassum raw material safety testing and to review potential products that could be made from the Sargassum.
The final phase of the project, which is due to commence in 2024, will focus on the establishment of a pilot plant to produce liquid organic fertilizer, as well as on outreach and supply chain development, which would entail the dissemination of a workable model to industry stakeholders in the Caribbean. Through continued stakeholder engagement, the project will also gather feedback to guide future work, strengthen relationships with Caribbean enterprises, and develop sustainable pathways for the commercialisation of new Sargassum products.
– ENDS –
RESOURCES:
In case you missed it, here is the recording of our recent seminar on Sargassum Value Chain Development.