ISSN 0429-9345
A guide to the seaweed industry
FAO FISHERIES TECHNICAL PAPER
441
The word “countries” appearing in the text refers to countries, territories and areas without distinction. The views expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations nor of their affiliated organization(s). The mention or omission of specific companies, their products or brand names does not imply any endorsement or judgement by the Food and Agriculture Organization of th e United Nations.
The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
ISBN 92-5-104958-0
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© FAO
2003
At present, the
total out put of the worl d's seaweed
industry amou nts to around
US$6 billion, wi th mor e than 8 mi llion tonnes of wet seawee d used ann ual ly. Seaweed s are wi dely used
as food but are also an importan t ingr ed ient for
the cosmet ics
industry. They also serve to pro duce hydro coll oids (al ginat e, agar and carrageen an) , whi ch are used as thickeni ng and gell ing agen ts. This docu ment hig hlights the risin g importance of s eawe ed far ming and popular in
show s how an essent ial Asian food has
become
Nor th and Sout h Ame rica as wel l as in E urope. The rep ort wil l be usef ul
to tho se wh o wish to know
mor e abo ut the s eawe ed industry , abo ut the market s for
comm erci al seawee ds and abou t the vari ous sour ces and meth ods of product ion. It is wri tten wi th a mi nimu m of techn ical lang uag e and is decisio ns concern ing seaweeds
and the
design ed to assist seaweed
in maki ng
industry.
ISBN 92-5-104958-0
9
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ISSN 0429-9345
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