Seaweed fertiliser row heads to court

Kelp Blue Dawn Aquaculture has taken the agriculture ministry to court over its refusal to register the company’s locally produced organic seaweed-based fertiliser.

The fertiliser is made from various species of marine algae and is used to enrich soil and promote plant growth.

Unlike chemical fertilisers, it is considered environmentally friendly and is often used in organic farming due to its low toxicity and high nutrient content.

According to documents filed at the High Court, Kelp Blue is asking the court to declare the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform’s decision, communicated in a letter dated 13 February 2025, as unlawful, irrational and a breach of the Constitution, which guarantees fair and reasonable administrative conduct.

The company is asking the court to set aside the decision taken by the executive director or the registrar.

It is also asking the court to declare that the registrar has no such powers, or to review and set aside the decision refusing the registration of Kelp Blue’s fertiliser as unlawful.

In the ministry’s rejection letter of 13 February, it was stated that missing certificates was one of the reasons for rejecting the application for registration.

“Your application was unsuccessful due to a certificate of analysis and laboratory results from an accredited laboratory for the trial conducted in Namibia not being attached, product label and material safety data sheet were not attached, product registration from the country of origin or importer was not attached, and the registration of the processing sterilising plant is also subject to the outcome of the final efficacy trial results of the biostimulant fertiliser product registration,” the letter states.

“Therefore, the applicant should fulfil the requirements stipulated under Section 3 of the Fertiliser, Farm Feeds and Agricultural Remedies Act 36 of 1947 for food safety and trade uses as outlined in standard operating procedures.

“It is against the above-mentioned background that the ministry is looking forward to close cooperation for the registration of Kelp Blue biostimulant fertiliser in the future.”

Kelp Blue managing director Fabian Shaanika in his founding affidavit says, however, that all the required trials were completed and submitted, with data provided by the University of Namibia, and certificates of analysis, microbial test results and product safety sheets were included in earlier submissions.

He says the product is manufactured at Lüderitz, rendering the foreign registration requirement irrelevant, and the executive director lacks the legal authority to reject the company’s application.

Kelp Blue claims the ministry continuously shifted its position over three years of correspondence, adding new and non-statutory requirements outside the scope of the Fertiliser, Farm Feeds and Agricultural Remedies Act.

The company maintains that its application met all legal thresholds and that the ministry’s refusal without affording it a hearing violated the constitutional right to administrative justice and procedural fairness.

Questions sent to the agriculture ministry were not responded to at the time of going to print.

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