This article provides one of the first academic assessments of upstream agribusiness value chain and rural livelihood challenges after the November 2013 Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), which devastated many coastal communities in the central Philippines. Based on a survey and semistructured interviews among fisherfolk, seaweed farmers and other stakeholders in Iloilo Province, this article lays bare the limited viability of the seaweed value chain as a result of the recurring typhoon threat, other environmental pressures and an ineffective regional political economy. Since Typhoon Yolanda, the marginalized communities have depended on horizontal coordination and support from international civil society. The empirical results show that enhanced information dissemination and public sector cooperation are necessary for the seaweed value chain to become more inclusive. The results could also have a wider significance for rural development in other coastal areas in Southeast Asia, namely in the spheres of adaptive strategies amidst vulnerability, upstream vertical coordination and upgrading.