Work
- Sourcing manager, hydrocolloidsA second qualified supplier for a raw material that had only one sourceThe same functional requirement, met by a species they had not considered. Quality, volume, consistency and price all inside their own specification.
- Sourcing manager, seaweed volume buyerThe missing volume found with a supplier they had already ruled outWritten off on freight, reopened on the total delivered price. A first trial shipment of 100 tonnes.
- Commercial lead at a producerShipments that clear customs first time, so the buyer orders againOne intake sheet per shipment with the checks built into it. A document strict market became a repeatable route.
- Founder raising capitalA demand case that holds up with investors and with buyersWho buys this, at which specification, at which price. Both sides ask the same question.
- Programme manager at a public bodyAn independent read on where algae demand is, and where it is notA published study for RVO on where algae can carry European strategic autonomy, and where the bottlenecks sit.
Clients are unnamed where the commercial position is still live, which is most of the time. We can talk about specifics under NDA.
What if you have been searching for the wrong thing?
The client, a European hydrocolloid producer, needed a specific functional property found in red seaweed. Currently they source from a single country, which makes them dependent on that supplier. Until recently this did not cause a problem, but for several reasons they expect the quality to decrease and the availability to decrease with it. The seaweed is a crucial ingredient for their business. The company has been active in the seaweed business for decades and knows the market of suppliers very well.
The client knows that they have a problem, and they know that they need to fix it sooner rather than later. They have been searching for alternative suppliers for more than a year, but until now without positive results.
BlueBurn started with an analysis of the current situation, understanding the problem from different perspectives. In this part we collaborated with scientists to understand the functional quality of the ingredient that is used by the client to create their product, and what they want to achieve with that product.
The result of phase 1 is a list of potential seaweeds, based on criteria created in that phase.
Phase 2 is about creating a short list from the long list, in collaboration with the client. The short list is then used to identify potential suppliers that need to meet the specific supplier criteria of the client.
Phase 3 is about reaching out to the shortlisted suppliers. BlueBurn audits the suppliers and requests samples. The samples are evaluated by the client and a supplier is selected.
What made this case unique is that from the results of the steps in phase 1, a variety of seaweed species turned out to be suitable. These seaweeds are of a different species than the one currently sourced. So by changing the perspective and widening the range of potential seaweeds as a source, we were able to find a seaweed species and a supplier that are suitable for the client.
What if the deal is failing on the wrong number?
The client, one of the world's biggest seaweed buyers by volume, sources from around the world. They know most seaweed farmers and know exactly the quality of each region. Currently they face a scarcity in the region they mainly source from. To fill the gap they need additional volume.
They reached out to several farmers from their database, but had not succeeded in filling the gap when BlueBurn reached out to them.
The farmer BlueBurn represents was on their list, but there was no active communication and no sales. One of the reasons they did not pursue active outreach to this farmer was the assumption that shipping costs would outprice the raw material costs.
BlueBurn's involvement as a mediator between both parties resulted in a first trial shipment of 100 tonnes of dry seaweed. BlueBurn played a key role in establishing the partnership between both parties. BlueBurn negotiated the price for both sides, the volume and the timing of the shipment, and played a key role in guiding the shipment process and the creation of the documents. For this process BlueBurn uses its custom built tool.
The first hundred tonnes shipped this summer.
What happens after both sides say yes?
Sales does not stop after the contract has been signed.
After both parties have agreed on price, quality and volume, the physical part of procurement starts. Many elements can go wrong and result in unsuccessful sales and in the discontinuation of further orders.
BlueBurn has developed a tool to guide and advise the seller of seaweed and algae, helping them to create export documentation in an efficient way and making sure the goods arrive without any customs delay or additional customs costs.
It is a system rather than a rescue. One intake sheet per shipment, with the checks built into it. The producer owns the templates and the route, and the complexity that kept them out of that market becomes the thing that keeps their competitors out.
Who actually buys this, and why would they switch?
The client, Viride, grows microalgae for beta carotene on land in the Moroccan desert, using Atlantic seawater. They needed to raise, and the pitch had to answer who buys this and why they would switch.
Advised on the pitch deck, identified the ideal customer profile, and set up meetings with potential investors.
Where should a government put its money?
The client, RVO, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, wanted a study to better understand the potential that the algae industry has for the Dutch economy, and where it currently stands.
BlueBurn created a report with the title: Can Algae Power Sustainable Growth and Innovation in the EU? A study on whether and where algae can support European strategic autonomy and green innovation, and on where the real bottlenecks sit. It is public.
A note on this studyIt was written in July 2025 and our position has sharpened since. The introduction describes algae as a climate positive resource, which we would now call the weak version of the claim. The stronger and more defensible version is that algae displaces a fished or farmed input and grows on land and water that crops cannot use. The analysis of the bottlenecks still stands. The framing around it is one we have argued ourselves out of, publicly, in the year since.
The assets behind the work
- A producer databaseAlgae and seaweed producers worldwide, indexed by species, specification and real capacity rather than claimed capacity. We built it one conversation at a time, and it is why a shortlist takes days.
- A research baseSources indexed by the claim each one supports, in plain words, so an assertion on this site can be traced to the paper behind it rather than to a press release. For uncommon species this is not a nicety. The literature is frequently the only place the geography is written down.
- Standing relationships with research institutes and sector bodies across EuropeWhich is how we know where the evidence is thin and where the demand signal is missing.