Hurtigruten has highlighted seaweed as a sustainable ingredient used in various products onboard.

The cruise line said in a press release that the ingredient, which is deeply rooted in Nordic food, is featured in many dishes, beverages such as gin, beer and tea, as well as bath and body products.

“Seaweed has become an exciting expression of modern Norwegian cuisine – flavorful, versatile, and deeply connected to the coastline we sail every day,” said André Pettersen, chief product and hotel officer, Hurtigruten.

“Innovating with local ingredients from the sea, such as seaweed, allows us to showcase a highly sustainable resource with a low environmental impact. From cocktails and fine dining dishes to tea, bread, and amenities on board, it allows us to bring guests closer to both Norwegian traditions and the ingredients shaping the future of food.”

Since Hurtigruten’s F&B program, Norway’s Coastal Kitchen, is centered around providing guests with fresh and sustainable produce, seaweed is an integral part of the program.

Therefore, around 60 dishes served onboard – or 20 percent of all meals – feature seaweed in soups, pasta, butter or as a seasoning.

For example, the menu at Kysten, fine dining restaurant on Hurtigruten’s original Coastal Express itineraries, is built around seaweed, so it is featured in every dish.

Truffle seaweed is included in dishes like raw shrimp with sea urchins, butter-fried snow crab and Aquavit-marinated cloudberries with Arctic ice cream.

Seaweed caviar is available in the fine dining restaurant onboard the line’s Signature ships.

More recent additions include the seaweed bread introduced in 2024, which is made with freshly harvested sugar kelp from Lyngen Seaweed, which Hurtigruten partly owns.

The company also works with Lofoten Seaweed, which guests on its Culinary Voyage itineraries get to visit.

On the beverage side, gin with seaweed harvested from the Hurtigruten Seaweed Farm and created in collaboration with Bivrost features what the company says is a complex flavor profile with subtle maritime notes.

It is also used in cocktails developed by the bartenders as a sensory interpretation of the coastline.

Next up, the seaweed lager is developed in collaboration with the Bådin brewery.

Brewed with seaweed harvested from nearby coastal areas, it results in a flavor profile with what Hurtigruten describes as fresh, mineral undertones and a subtle umami character.

Finally, Røst, the fine-dining restaurant onboard Signature ships, offers special seaweed tea as part of the afternoon tea service.