Cascadia Seaweed, the Sidney, B.C. maker of kelp-based fertilizer products, has received $1.5 million of funding to “fast-track” its commercialization activities from the non-profit British Columbia Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy, or CICE.

The money will go towards developing a 100 hectare seaweed farm in Prince Rupert, B.C. under a partnership with Metlakatla Development Corporation, which is the business arm of the Metlakatla First Nation. The project will quadruple Cascadia’s production capacity.

“We are thrilled to receive support from CICE, which will accelerate our plans to scale up the cultivation and bioprocessing of seaweeds into agricultural products,” said Cascadia CFO Rob Napoli in a statement. “This builds on the support we’ve received from SDTC (Sustainable Development Technology Canada) and AAFC (Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada) and enables us to deliver nature-based and climate-positive solutions in a timely manner.

“These agencies have vetted our solutions, which are expected to avoid the release of one megatonne of CO2 [equivalent] by 2035.”

Last month, Cascadia launched its first agricultural product — a kelp-based fertilizer dubbed ReFeed Seaweed Extract and released under a partnership with ReFeed Canada, an agtech innovation hub in B.C.’s Fraser Valley that focuses on processes for up-cycling food waste.

The seaweed extract is a liquid plant food made from cultivated, cold-water kelp. Cascadia previously said in a statement it contains essential nutrients for plant growth and is ideal for a wide range of growing purposes.