On Thursday, June 26, Morgunblaðið published an interview with Julie Encausse, CEO and co-founder of Marea. In the interview, she explained that within a few months consumers will see an innovation in vegetable packaging, where the organic coating material Iceborea, made from seaweed, will replace plastic. Icelandic cucumbers will be the first seaweed-coated vegetables on the market, replacing the plastic wrap they have traditionally been packaged in. Tomatoes and turnips will follow.
The solution is being developed by the Icelandic startup Marea, based at the Iceland Ocean Cluster in Reykjavík. Marea is part of the New Business Venture Fund’s portfolio, having joined through the Fund’s investment initiative in 2023.
“The first formula we developed was for blueberries,” says Julie Encausse in the interview. “But that would have required more complex production abroad. We’ll return to that later, but as a small startup with limited funding—even with great investors—we decided to focus on cucumbers because they’re available year-round in Iceland. We received a very positive response here, since everyone is open to innovation, eager to try new things, and willing to do better.”
Julie notes that the coating can extend the shelf life of cucumbers by up to 15 days, compared to about a week for uncoated ones, and it can be easily washed off. The coating preserves firmness in the same way as plastic packaging but is better at retaining nutrients such as vitamin C and antioxidants. Biodegradable labels with product information and coating ingredients will be used at first, though in the long term the company expects QR codes on store displays to suffice.
“It always takes time to change consumer behavior,” Julie adds. “But we managed to stop using plastic bags in shops and switch to bringing our own. I’m optimistic that this step can also be achieved.”
The seaweed coating is not Marea’s only product. Previously, the company developed so-called “seaweed plastic” with promising results. By 2021, they had created prototypes of plastic films that could, for example, separate frozen fish fillets or be used as wrapping films.
“When the journalist brings this up, Julie smiles: ‘It’s fun to look back, because wow, so much has happened since then.’ At that time, facilities and regulations in Iceland weren’t in place to move into production. But that seems to be changing now, and Marea will soon return to seaweed plastic, though for the moment the coating is their main focus.”
In 2022, Marea partnered with the biotech company Algalíf, which produces ingredients from microalgae. Their production left behind seaweed byproducts that Algalíf wanted to reuse, and Marea quickly saw the potential to turn it into an organic coating material—perfectly aligned with both companies’ vision of sustainable production.
Now, Marea is setting up a factory in South Iceland. Next comes the certification process, followed by trials with producers, where they will be trained to use the coating. Market tests with distributors and retailers will follow soon after. Within just a few months, seaweed-coated cucumbers are expected to appear on shelves in Icelandic stores.
“We really look forward to getting feedback from consumers,” Julie concludes.
Marea ehf. is a biotechnology startup specializing in developing packaging-free solutions from seaweed. Marea uses byproducts from Algalíf’s algae cultivation to produce a dry substance that can be mixed with water and sprayed onto fruits and vegetables to extend their shelf life.
