PORTLAND, Maine — Members of Maine's seaweed industry say a court ruling could dramatically change the nature of the business in the state, which has seen the harvest of the gooey stuff grow by leaps and bounds in the last decade.
Maine has a long tradition of seaweed harvesting, in which the sticky algae is gathered for a variety of commercial uses, including popular food products. But the state's highest court ruled last month that permission from coastal landowners is needed for harvesting rockweed, a type of seaweed critical to the industry.
The Maine Seaweed Council has called the ruling "a disappointing setback" that will force harvesters to adjust.
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court's ruling was an outgrowth of a lawsuit involving Acadian Seaplants, a Canadian company with harvesting operations in rural Down East Maine.
