The North Atlantic Blue BioTech Summit Returns in March 2027

A version of this press release appeared on Hatch Blue News.

Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences and Hatch Blue bring the North Atlantic Blue BioTech Summit back to Portland, Maine, on Thursday, March 11, 2027, two days after Seafood Expo North America closes in Boston.

The summit complements Seafood Expo North America with a focused day on blue biotech: the business of waste valorization and upcycling of marine resources into high-value products and materials from seaweed and microalgae to fish and shellfish byproducts. The global market is valued at roughly $7 billion and, according to industry estimates, is expected to double by the mid-2030s, with North America already accounting for the largest regional share.

The Roux Institute at Northeastern University joins as co-host for the second edition, bringing closer ties to the life sciences and AI-innovation ecosystems and resources for helping entrepreneurs launch.

The event format carries over from the first year: an invite-only investment and market-access platform where investors meet founders and corporate scout partners. The venue, speaker line-up, curated founder pitches, and sponsorship packages will be announced over the coming months.

“Maine is an excellent place to bring people together around the potential for blue biotech, considering the region’s strong commercial fishing and aquaculture sectors, valuable algae and seaweed resources, expertise in life sciences innovation, and connections across the North Atlantic,” said Bigelow Laboratory’s Vice President for Research Beth Orcutt.

“We’re excited to join the Blue Biotech Summit as a partner this year. At the Roux Institute, we already work with several blue biotech startups, and we’re building a corridor of expertise that runs from Northeastern’s labs in Boston up to Portland. Maine has been working the water for centuries. Our job is to help the next generation of companies build on that heritage and find the science, talent, and support they need to grow here,” said Elena Brondolo, director of entrepreneurship, life sciences & health at Northeastern University’s Roux Institute

The inaugural summit last March was the first in the North Atlantic built entirely around blue biotech, and it sold out with 200 registrants and a waitlist. Biotech investors from RA Capital and food and agriculture investors from S2G Investments shared the stage with Unilever, Skretting, NOAA, ocean-farming nonprofit GreenWave, and LifeMine Therapeutics. Thor Sigfusson, founder and chairman of the Iceland Ocean Cluster, gave the keynote on what it would take to accelerate blue biotech in the U.S.

“March felt like the start of something,” said Hatch Blue’s Innovation Studio Director Dylan Terry. “Scientists, investors, and global brands that rarely share a room spent the day finding reasons to work together. In year two, we want to turn those conversations into companies and deals, and an engine for growth for coastal communities in the US.”

The event is now open for registrations of interest.

Photo Captions

Photo 1: Members and affiliates of Bigelow Laboratory at the inaugural North Atlantic Blue BioTech Summit.

Photo 2: Senior Research Scientist Michael Lomas (right) speaks with Adam St. Gelais (left), aquaculture innovation specialist at the University of Maine Aquaculture Research Institute, during the summit (Credit: Kerry Thurlow/Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences).