🗓️ Date: April 1st, 2025
📍 Location: VIVES University of Applied Sciences, Belgium
👥 Audience: ~15 students (Culinary Arts & Tourism)
🎤 Presenter: Kaat Vanhegen (VIVES)
As part of the Tour ‘n Tasting series, Kaat Vanhegen from VIVES University of Applied Sciences led an interactive workshop titled “Seaweed as an Innovative Food Ingredient”. The session was designed to introduce culinary arts and tourism students to the nutritional, environmental, and gastronomic value of seaweed, as well as its growing relevance in biotechnology and food innovation.
Participants explored different species, textures, and flavours of seaweed through hands-on tastings, sparking ideas on how this sustainable resource could be integrated into future culinary creations or local tourism experiences. The workshop also discussed biotechnological applications, such as the use of macroalgae in food product development — aligning directly with the objectives of the I3-4-SEAWEED project.
📚 Activities like this are key to promoting awareness among young professionals and civil society, demonstrating how education and training can serve as effective tools for sharing the project’s goals and encouraging sustainable food systems.
By embedding seaweed innovation into formal education, VIVES contributes to building the next generation of experts and advocates in the blue bioeconomy. 🌱🌊
