Seaweed Farming is the system of cultivating and harvesting of seaweed. This consists of controlling the life cycle of algae as much as you can.
Oban is a resort town, located on Scotland’s West Coast. Up to 25,000 tourists a year visit. A trial began in April 2017, to farm seaweed near Oban. The trial site is being looked after by researchers from the world renowned Scottish Association for Marine Science at Oban.
Why Oban?
Seaweed isn’t just being explored in Oban it is also harvested throughout Scotland.
The waters surrounding the Outer Hebrides in Scotland have been attributed to be some of the most pristine and unpolluted in the world. Hence they have been given the highest quality classification available by SEPA (Scottish Environmental Protection Agency) to reflect this.
Why Farm Seaweed: Seaweed Benefits for the UK
The Global value of seaweed in 2014 was 6.4billion US dollars (~£5billion). The value exceeds that of the world’s lemons and limes!
As a highly sustainable resource seaweed requires no land, freshwater or fertilizer to grow. Therefore some species of seaweed are even believed to grow up to 2 feet per day! Seaweed can be used to enhance nutrition and is naturally rich in Iodine (EU Approved Health Claim). Also seaweed may be used as a salt replacement for flavour and shelf-life extension.
There are numerous uses of Seaweed.
- Animal fodder
- Biofuels
- Beauty products
- and most importantly… Food and health!
These uses are globally relevant, and with here at home with seaweed benefits for the UK.
Seaweed is thought to have been used by early Homo sapiens. Furthermore it was used to provide them with a consistent supply of necessary minerals and vitamins. There is archaeological evidence to support this.
Nowadays it is used as a popular staple item of food in Japan, Korea and China as well as around the rest of the world. Some great recipes can be found incorporating seaweed as a powder to make Fresh Pasta, Meatballs, and Fish cakes, to name a few!
Ishga is a brand of skin products that are made with Organic Scottish Seaweed. Even Kim Kardashian uses Seaweed products in her skincare routine! Joshua Zeichner, Managing Director of cosmetic and clinical research at Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC. He states that “Seaweed is rich in vitamins, minerals and amino acids that support healthy skin cell function”.
This is just one of the reasons that beauty and skincare products are being produced using seaweed.
Our Source: Developing an Industry with Seaweed Benefits for the UK
We use dedicated and specialist harvesting at Seaweed & Co. Futhermore Vessels are used to source our wild Seaweed from the pristine seas around the Scottish Outer Hebrides.
In addition our Seaweed is collected under exclusive harvesting rights from the Crown Estate. Consequently our Patent Pending processing systems and technologies are used to optimise health and nutrition benefits in every batch of our unique Seaweed.
If you would like more information on our seaweed or what we do, and the wider seaweed benefits for the UK, please contact Seaweed & Co. or Doctor Seaweed today!
