The United States was previously relying on importation from Asia to answer the demand for seaweeds as a food product, as Asia is the leader in seaweed production.
US Seaweed production aimed to meet local demand for health
Since early 2015, several enterprising Americans in Maine started a seaweed production venture called the Maine Fresh Sea Farms that recently harvested their first full yield of a small skiff in the clean waters of the Damariscotta estuary.
They cultivated tiny starter plants of three edible varieties of seaweed namely dulse, alaria and kelp back in September and they now have a wide and long stretch of biomass floating just under the water’s surface.
Entrepreneurs Peter Arnold, Seth Barker and Peter Fischer pointed out that they have been astounded by the tremendous speed of growth, with many already reaching a growth of well over 10 feet.
They saw the need to develop innovative ways to liven up the marine ecosystem in their area as they saw the progressive decline of Mine’s traditional marine industries like sardines, cod and shrimp.
With technological and financial support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and a local non-profit agency, they hope to institutionalize seaweed farming and share the technology and methods with the local marine industry stakeholders.
“No one was really doing fresh, at least here in this market,” Arnold says. “So we thought, ‘That’s an opening.’ “
Experts believe that kelp is the new kale and many in the culinary community are keeping it abuzz with seeing it as the next hot item to appear in the gourmet scene.
Barton Seaver, as director of Harvard’s Healthy and Sustainable Food Program, said that it may soon become the next trend.
“Watch out, ’cause it’s coming, and it’ll be everywhere in the next decade,” Seaver says, who is also a former chef and recently published a seaweed cookbook.
Among the many benefits of seaweed is that they require no fertilizer to boost production, no pesticides, no fresh water or the need for arable land. It also contains a lot of health-promoting nutrients like iodine, potassium, calcium protein, soluble fiber and Omega 3 fatty acids among others.
Seaweeds, due to their rapid growth and production, increases carbon dioxide uptake and reduces ocean acidification, which is also beneficial for marine life, as well as for the environment.
With the many benefits of seaweed, it is not going to be long before the US may be able to see a dramatic increase in seaweed production and meet its demand in the market.
The post U.S. Seaweed Production Sees Promise As Food Source appeared first on NUTRITION CLUB CANADA.
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