Campaigners opposed to kelp being harvested in Bantry Bay are planning a protest, while the company that secured the licence has rejected claims made against it and suggests the public has been “misled”.

Work on the country’s first large-scale kelp harvesting operation is due to commence on July 4.

A group campaigning against kelp harvesting in Bantry Bay has secured a judicial review into the decision to grant a licence for what would be the biggest such harvesting operation in the State.