In comparison to the extensive seaweed farms of Asia, seaweed aquaculture in Europe is very small scale. The main activity of the European seaweed industry involves harvesting and exploiting natural populations mainly for the colloid and plant biostimulants industry. Developing concern about environmental impacts due to harvesting pressure on wild populations has encouraged seaweed farming projects throughout European waters. Expansion of industries based on macroalgae can only be practicably achieved through algal farming. From a biological point of view, the potential impact on seaweed genetic diversity has triggered concern for sustainable practices. Preserving natural genetic diversity is a pre-requisite for developing efficient resource production through farming. Compared to cultivars selected for land agriculture (maize, wheat…), strain selection for seaweed farming is at a very early age and an inevitable leap in knowledge is expected. EU countries are facing common technological challenges, environmental concerns as well as financial and legal barriers. For further optimisation of seaweed mariculture systems, more focus is required on the production of species for high-value markets and of better adapted varieties selected from local populations. As marine environments are less controllable and are more variable than land-based systems, breeding should aim at improved strains adapted to the local environment as well as preventing the introgression of unsuitable genes in natural populations. This talk will discuss some important questions that arise with respect to our efficiency in selecting the most important traits for the brown algal kelp Saccharina latissima, such as yield stability, and on the compounds and substances to produce and apply them in a the context of the preservation of natural populations.. Perspectives for a global regulation for seaweed breeding and seed production in EU will be given that could also be implemented in other regions of the world.