Blue mussels are struggling along the UK’s intertidal coast, with big implications for the wider marine ecosystems. By contrast, we see a completely different picture at our Marine Recovery Zone – not only are mussels recruiting naturally, but they are also growing exceptionally well. It's the clearest sign we have that mussels treat this water as home, and that our system supports their growth. Each unit can carry up to 10,000 mussels, building reefs in miniature exactly where we put them and supporting cleaner water as they grow.

Our science team is testing how far that goes. Ana is measuring exactly how well our mussels filter water, take up nutrients and reduce bacteria: real numbers, gathered as the system operates, with results still to come. It's the same standard of evidence any future site would need before a claim about water quality can stand up.

The mussel figures above come from an independent study carried out with Defra, the Environment Agency, and Natural England, comparing our Kelpedo system with traditional seaweed-growing methods.

Seaweed, mussels, oysters, scallops, mixed and matched from the seafloor to the water column, all on the same system, designed to improve water quality, build biodiversity, and move a site toward Good Environmental Status. Mature shellfish grown here can act as an ark population too, like a seed bank for the species, ready to help repopulate reefs elsewhere.