Foraging does not stop at the shoreline. There are many valuable plants available for harvest at low tide.  Seaweed harvest and cultivation is a billion dollar a year industry in Japan. Seaweeds are cultivated and harvested commercially in Maine, Massachusetts, California, Oregon and Alaska. Most commercial harvest in Alaska at present involves seaweed with herring roe attached for export to Japan. The harvest of these seaweed species is regulated in Alaska.  Seaweed harvesting for personal use is permitted virtually without restriction. Permits would be required for commercial seaweed harvest.

Not only are seaweeds sources of industrial chemicals used in products from food to paint, they are also very nutritious vegetables growing in popularity in the U.S. The main concern with seaweeds for food is the purity of the area in which they are harvested, which is a perfect selling point for seaweeds from Alaska's pure, clean coastal waters.