Experts eye seaweed as ‘breakthrough crop’

SCOTLAND’S top food and farming brains are looking to seaweed as a potential breakthrough crop in the years ahead.

Despite plenty of historic seaweed use in agricultural communities around the country’s shoreline, the abundant plants have rarely been the subject of full-scale commercial attention until now, when their nutritional benefits – and stunningly low environmental impact – have thrust them into the food sector spotlight.

At Scotland’s Rural College, work is now under way to develop products containing locally-harvested seaweed, with its SAC Consulting Food and Drink team highlighting its rich supply of minerals, protein, fibre and vitamins, and sparsity of calories and fat. Adding even more interest to the nutritional bundle is recent research suggesting that a seaweedrich diet can counter depression and potentially mitigate Alzheimer’s disease.

SAC consultant Alistair Trail said that seaweed could offer ‘health by stealth’ as a salt alternative, as it contains 92 per cent less sodium.

SRUC development chef Mark Barker has worked with Highland Crackers to develop a healthy cracker to meet the criteria of the ‘paleo’ diet, using seaweed flakes as an alternative to table salt. Made with sunflower, flax and pumpkin seed, two flavours were created using smoked and unsmoked Kombu Kelp, harvested from a 40km stretch of seabed around the East Neuk of Fife by Mara Seaweed.

SAC Consulting has also developed a seaweed drink with Lighthouse Seaweed, using a blend of Scottish fruit, vegetables and seaweed to produce a sweet and healthy drink.

Mr Trail noted that seaweed had sustainability credentials that no other plant crop could touch – it requires no land, no fertiliser and no freshwater.

Current research also suggested that seaweed is a rich source of phytochemicals and antioxidants, and has antimicro bacterial properties that could help reduce the need for chemical preservatives in food manufacturing.