Seaweed in health and disease prevention

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-802772-1.00002-6 Society and Seaweed: Understanding the Past This chapter provides a general overview of the human dimensions of seaweeds, their use

Disease Prevention

Edited by

Joël Fleurence Ira Levine

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To my sons Julien and Simon for the joy and the happiness

that they bring to my life.

—Joël Fleurence

To Dr Patricia Bonamo for her faith in playing a hunch.

To MILKS for their loving support and to my wife and

best friend Laurie.

—Ira Levine

Dr Ira A Levine, PhD, is a tenured professor of

natural and applied sciences at the University of

Southern Maine, Chairperson of the USM Lewiston

Auburn College Faculty, and Director of the USM,

LAC Aquatic Research Lab (algal genetic

engineer-ing, physiological ecology, and new product

devel-opment) In addition, Dr Levine is the President and

Board Chair of the Algae Foundation and President

and Board Chair of Professors Beyond Borders Dr

Levine was awarded a 2009–10 US State Department,

Fulbright New Century Scholar and in 2007–08 was a

visiting professor of biology at Duke University Dr Levine combines 30 years of applied

and basic research in molecular, physiological ecology, and cultivation of algae, aquatic farming management, and aquaculture engineering Dr Levine’s farming experience includes open-ocean and pond cultivation in Canada, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and the United States (Hawaii, Florida, and Maine) Current efforts include algal cultivar enhancement for aquaculture and agriculture feed supplementa-

tion, human nutraceuticals and cosmaceuticals, fine chemicals, and plant-based biofuels

Dr Joel Fleurence, PhD, is a professor of marine

biology and biochemistry at Nantes University He

is one of two directors of the Research Laboratory

“Sea, Molecules, Health.” He has been a member

of the University National Council since 2007 and

was elected vice-president of the section “Biology

of Organisms” in 2011 He is a senior scientist and

an international expert on seaweed valorization

(100 international publications including patents)

In 1985, he began his research career in the

pharma-ceutical industry in the French company

Roussel-Uclaf In 1990, he was recruited by the Institute of

Valorisation of Seaweeds (CEVA, Brittany, France)

to lead research into the chemical composition and nutritional properties of macroalgae Professor Fleurence has participated in the establishment of the French regula-

tion on marine algae used as sea vegetables In 1994, he was appointed head of the laboratory “Proteins and Quality” at Ifremer (Research French Organism for the Sea Exploitation) and developed research on the nutritional properties of seaweed protein for use in human or animal food Since 2002, he has been working as a professor at the University of Nantes and leads research on the development of seaweed uses as protein or pigment sources for industry

The editors thank Mr O Barbaroux for the photographs of seaweed factories and markets

Seaweed in Health and Disease Prevention http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-802772-1.00001-4

Algae: A Way of Life and

I Levine

University of Southern Maine, Lewiston, ME, United States

“Vilor alga” (translated as “more vile or worthless than algae”), wrote Virgil, the Latin Poet, in 30 BC Civilization was aware of the role of algae in the human condi-

tion long before Virgil The use of macroalgae dates back to Shen Nung, the father

of husbandry and medicine, approximately 3000 BC (Doty, 1979) Seaweeds were

reported to be utilized in Iceland in 960 BC, the Chinese Book of Poetry (800–600 BC)

praised housewives for cooking with algae, and the Chinese Materia Medica (600 BC)

refers to algae as follows: “Some algae are a delicacy fit for the most honorable guest,

even for the King himself” (Porterfield, 1922; Wood, 1974)

Macroalgae (seaweeds) are a diverse group of predominantly marine,

multicel-lular, photosynthetic, chlorophyll “a”-containing, eukaryotic organisms, lacking true roots, stems, and leaves with simple reproductive structures and found from the intertidal zone to 300-m deep The macroalgae or seaweeds are evolutionarily diverse and are found in two kingdoms, Plantae and Chromista, and four phyla, Cha-

rophyta (Chara), Chlorophyta (green), Rhodophyta (red), and Ochrophyta (brown)

The approximately 10,000 described marine macroalgal species are segregated by photosynthetic pigment content, carbohydrate food reserve, cell wall components, and flagella construction and orientation This eclectic group has evolved over the last 600–900 million years occupying a variety of ecological niches, ie, attached to hard substrata, unconsolidated sand and mud, other algae, seagrasses, free floating, and, on rare occasions, parasitic There are many additional groups of algae, known collectively as microalgae, including but not limited to the blue green bacteria (eg,

Spirulina sp.), diatoms, and dinoflagellates, which can form biofilms, colonial

for-mations, and turfs Occasionally these formations are considered “macroalgae,” but for the purpose of this text they lie outside of the scope of this book

Early examples of utilization of seaweeds for medicinal purposes include the

Chinese use of Sargassum for goiter (16th century, Chinese herbal, “Pen Tsae Kan Mu”), Gelidium for intestinal afflictions, and Laminaria for the dilation of the cervix

in difficult child births (Dawson, 1966) The Japanese’s lack of goiter (one

case/mil-lion people) is contributed to their large consumption of seaweed and their iodine concentration Oriental seaweed iodine concentrations range from 18 to 1600 mg/kg dry weight (Chapman and Chapman, 1980) Agar, a phycocolloidal extract from

commercial red algae, eg, Gracilaria, has been used since the 17th century as a

laxative and is perhaps the world’s first diet fad In addition, during times of war, agar was utilized as a wound dressing because of its antiblood-clotting activity allow-ing wounds to be appropriately disinfected Subsequently, agar was identified as the ideal substrate for culturing bacteria, assisting with the foundational research into the microbial world Brown algal phycocolloidal extracts, alginate and algin, have been used in the binding of pills and ointments, cholesterol reduction, as a hemostatic agent (control of bleeding), and have replaced agar as the primary dental mold gel The ancient Greeks utilized red algae as a vermifuge, thought to be the same alga rediscovered on Corsica in 1775, known as Corsican moss Finally, a common alga

from both North America and Europe, Chondrus crispus, a red alga, has been used

as a remedy for urinary tract infections, diarrhea, breast infections, and tuberculosis (Dawson, 1966) Additional traditional algal uses as medicines include: dulse

(Palmaria palmata) extract used to assist in breaking of fevers (18th-century England), bull kelp steam extract used to fight headaches (Alaska, USA), Durvillaea as a cure

for scabies (New Zealand), and antifungal and antibiotic compounds from the brown, green and red algae (Chapman and Chapman, 1980)

The inclusion of large amounts of seaweeds in a balanced diet has been connected

to decreased rates of many of the “Western lifestyle” diseases (eg, cancer, cular diseases) Reduced rates of breast cancer in postmenopausal Japanese women are thought to be connected to the ingestion of seaweeds in general and the kelps Kombu and Wakame in particular Potential mechanisms include: increased fiber influence on fecal bulk and bowel transit time, alteration of posthepatic metabolism

cardiovas-of sterols, antibiotic and enzymatic influence on enteric bacterial populations, and increased immune response (Teas, 1983, as reported in Erhart, 2015a) Additional research efforts include (1) a 95% reduction in cancer rates when fed a hot water-extracted kelp powder and (2) apoptosis of stomach, colon, and leukemia cancer cells

by F- and U-fucoidan-sulfated polysaccharides from kelps (Yamamoto et al., 1986and Anonymous, 1990–1996, as reported in MCSV Cancer Prevention and Treat-ment bulletin) Miller (2008 as reported in Erhart, 2015b) reported an increase in fibrocystic breast disease in American women rose from 3% to 90% in the 1920s and 2000s, respectively In addition, he infers that 15% of American women experi-ence iodine deficiencies and the same percentage of American women develop breast cancer; however, Japanese women experience the lowest cancer rates by including

200 times as much iodine per day as their American counterparts (45,000 μg/day and 240 μg/day, respectively) Dr Miller hypothesizes that both fibrocystic disease and breast cancer are iodine deficiency disorders Kelps provide some of the highest amounts of bioavailable iodine, up to 18,000 times as much as fresh vegetables

As a young man coming from New York City, seaweeds were considered to be just a smelly mess found on the beach but after 10 years of studying algae in Hawaii, the author has embraced his Hawaiian roots and uses the term “limu,” which accord-ing to Pukui and Elbert (1977) as reported by Abbott (1984) is: “a general name for all kinds of plants living under water, both fresh and salt, also algae growing in any damp place in the air, as on the ground, rocks, and on other plants; also mosses, liv-erworts and lichens…” However, for most Hawaiians, limu means edible seaweeds

(Abbott, 1984) Along with fish and poi, limu constituted the troika of the Hawaiian balanced diet, providing vitamins A, B, C, minerals (iodine), and protein Histori-

cal Hawaiian limu usage included the treatment of coral cuts, representing a nearly

instant infection, which were historically treated with Sargassum, similar to the

traditional use of mosses as a poultice In addition, seaweeds were used in religious ceremonies (burial cleansing rituals), cultural celebrations (weddings and hula dancing), and family celebrations

“Is Seaweed the New Lobster?” was a headline from the March 2015 edition

of Down East: The Magazine of Maine; quite a transformation from the “the stuff

washed up on the beach, which tends to be rotting and full of flies” (Sneddon, 2015)

Maine, a maritime-based state in the northeastern corner of the United States, has

a long history of seaweed utilization dating back to its colonial period and beyond, when marine macroalgae were referred to as “sea manure” (Sneddon, 2015) As algae in general and seaweeds in particular have played an ever-increasing role in the human diet, health, and well-being, its utilization and product development have rapidly expanded our appreciation for its diversity of uses As with lobsters, which were plentiful and served up as food for the state’s prisoner population, seaweeds have been experiencing a frameshift from the smelly stuff on the beach to a source

of valued balanced nutrition

Shep Erhart, the founder of Maine Coast Sea Vegetables, is a pioneer of seaweed utilization in the United States and has dedicated his life to the development and marketing of seaweed products throughout America and beyond In the 1970s he realized the potential for seaweeds as a complete source of colloidal, chelated miner-

als, trace elements, and vitamins to replace the loss of these nutrients from processed

food products “Some people who are mineral deficient get around it and they go crazy…It can kind of buzz you out because it is so energizing” (Shep Erhart, quoted

based biofuels became a research and development priority in the United States during the 21st century If studying algae, previous to renewed interests, was held in such disregard or benign neglect, then why would anyone dedicate his or her life to algae? Phycology has a long history of remarkable, dedicated scientists and lay practitioners who have advanced our algal-based knowledge through their tireless field and labora-

tory efforts Massive algal collections were assembled and herbarium libraries

estab-lished at universities (eg, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts) and museums

(eg, Bishop Museum, Honolulu, Hawaii) Meticulous anatomical, reproductive, and systematic treatises were published expanding our body of knowledge Biotechnologi-

cal methodologies were incorporated into current molecular, genomic, ultrastructural, physiological ecology, and biochemical studies advancing our understanding of the biology, ecology, systematics, and commercial value of algae Algae represent a field

of study that is far from the mainstream Phycologists have enjoyed their life’s work

in relative obscurity until recent interests in seaweed farming, seaweeds as a healthy food, feed, medicine, and biofuel Algae have enjoyed the focus and funding to move seaweed and its place in human health and disease prevention to the forefront of the human condition The editors of this book have assembled a group of experts dedicated

to the advancement of algae, who will endeavor to bring seaweeds and their role in health and disease prevention to a diverse group of readers

The Biology of Algae by R.A Lewin, 1971 Phycol Newsletter 7:1

The biology of algae is a duty, or a task,

That consumes the better portion of your time

In the sampling of waters from an ocean, or a flask,

Or a snow-field, or a gutter-full of slime.

You get cold, and wet, and grubby; you get dusty, hot, and dry;

You get dian dejected, and defied;

But you’ll find that, if you’re lucky—if you’re good—and if you try,

You can do a little science on the side.

The biology of algae is a pastime, or an art,

That embodies a diversity of skill:

How to mend a pH meter which has somehow come apart,

Or to regulate a microscope or still;

How to edit a proposal, or a chapter of a book;

How to float upon the academic tide;

How to teach a fellow creature how to speak, or how to cook,

And a little bit of science on the side.

The biology of algae is a virtue, or a vice,

That entails some tricky searching of the soul.

It involves the growth of fishes, and the harvesting of rice,

And pollution, and the origins of coal.

It may get us into trouble; it may get us into space;

Its dilemmas are as long as they are wide.

It involves some moral judgements on the future of our race—

And a little bit of science on the side.

REFERENCES

Abbott, I.A., 1984 Limu, an Ethnobotanical Study of Some Hawaiian Seaweeds Pacific Tropical Botanical Garden, Lawai, p 35.

Anonymous, 1990–1996 Research Project: Glycobiology Research Aimed at the Development

of Useful Carbohydrates Research Institute for Glycotechnology Advancement, ken Japan.

Aomori-Chapman, V.J., Aomori-Chapman, D.J., 1980 Seaweeds and Their Uses Chapman and Hall, London,

p 334.

Dawson, E.Y., 1966 Marine Botany, an Introduction Holt, Rinehart and Winston, New York,

Erhart, S., 2015b Sea Vegetables for Iodine Sufficiency http://www.seaveg.com

Lewin, R.A., 1981 The Biology of Algae and Other Verses University Press of America, Washington, D.C, p 103 Originally published 1971 The Biology of Algae Phycol Newsletter 7:1.

Miller, D.W., 2008 Extrathyroidal benefits of iodine J Am Physicians Surgeons 11 (4), 106–110.

Porterfield, W.M., 1922 References to the algae in Chinese classics Bull Torrey Bot Club

49, 297–300.

Pukui, M.K., Elbert, S.H., 1977 Hawaiian Dictionary University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu

402 + 188 pp.

Sneddon, R., 2015 Kelp: It’s what’s for dinner Down East Magazine 61 (8), 60–72.

Teas, J., 1983 The dietary intake of Laminaria, a brown seaweed, and breast cancer prevention

Nutr Cancer 4 (3).

Wood, C.G., 1974 Seaweed extracts: a unique ocean resource J Chem Ed 51 (7), 449–452.

Yamamoto, I., Maruyama, H., Takahashi, M., Komiyama, K., 1986 The effects of dietary

or intraperitoneally injected seaweed preparations on the growth of sarcoma-180 cells subcutaneously implanted into mice Cancer Lett 30 (2), 125–131.

Seaweed in Health and Disease Prevention http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-802772-1.00002-6

Society and Seaweed:

Understanding the Past

This chapter provides a general overview of the human dimensions of seaweeds, their

uses, management, and harvesting techniques, touching upon not only the history of seaweeds, but also their future

For centuries, coastal populations have harvested a wide variety of seaweeds within all the algal groups: red (Rhodophyta), brown (Phaeophyceae), and green (Chlorophyta) They were most often first used for domestic purposes, such as for human consumption; later, industrial uses were discovered In many areas the increased demand for seaweed pushed harvesters to search for more effective har-

vesting techniques and to establish rules to manage their activities (eg, France, Japan,

and Korea) Since seaweeds are a natural resource they require careful management

to sustainably and efficiently harvest In some cases, harvesting and the

manage-ment of seaweed may be the responsibility of the processing industry or local fishers’

organizations These organizations, with the help of scientists, attempt to manage the

resource and the ecosystem richness associated with it in sustainable ways

Seaweeds can be a lucrative business, driven by economic rather than

environ-mental considerations This often meant that harvesters jumped on a “mechanical treadmill,” forever working to improve the technology available for increased har-

vests (eg, Japan) and profits Though seaweed harvesting is often highly

mecha-nized, some species are still harvested manually because of ecological limitations or cultural preferences, giving them greater value Historically, there was also often a gender component involved with women being the primary harvesters of seaweeds (eg, in Wales (O’Conner, 2013), France (Frangoudes, 2011), Japan (Delaney, 2011),

and Korea (Ii, 2012)) and though this has changed in many parts of the world, in others, women remain key to seaweed harvesting Current harvesting methods, tech-

nologies, and cultural preferences have a strong connection with both historical uses

and culture and society themselves The wide variety of uses put to seaweeds today stands as testament to the ingenuity of humankind.

USES OF SEAWEED: PAST AND PRESENT

The most traditional uses of seaweed include both nonconsumptive and consumptive forms: as medicine, as inputs into industrial processes, as fertilizer and animal feed, and for other domestic purposes such as for building materials Human consumptive uses include raw products, such as in salads, soups, and main dishes, including sushi,

as well as in processed form such as flavorings in chips and snacks

NONCONSUMPTIVE HUMAN USES

One of the most common and widespread nonconsumptive use of seaweeds was as inputs for industry, including glass and soap production

Production of Glass and Soap

The first recorded commercial use of seaweeds in Europe is from the 17th century when they were used for the production of glass (eg, France and Norway) Produc-tion increased and expanded until, in the first half of the 18th century, burning kelp was allowed along the French coastline, enabling algae ashes to replace wood ash

in glass production In France, glass was the most important industry for seaweed harvesters until markets developed for kelp in iodine manufacturing Founded in Normandy, plants for this industry extended to Brittany, where algal resources were more abundant In the 1770s the first plants producing soda were also established in this region At this time, algae were predried over dunes and then the seaweed was burned in stone ovens (Fig 2.1) This activity required the participation of entire families because of the intensity of labor required In fact, additional assistance of laborers from inland communities was often also required because of the intensity of the labor (Frangoudes, 2011; Frangoudes and Garineaud, 2015) In the French case the use of kelp, for potash production, altered the structure of the harvesting, which now became more intensive In these areas, seaweed or potash is no longer used for household needs, but became a pure industrial input

A similar evolution is found in Norway where soda and glass production were being produced during the same period Around 1755, burning of kelp for potash was an important income for farmers in the regions between Rogaland and Sør-Trøn-delag The smoke from the kelp fires was sometimes so dense that navigation was difficult, causing several conflicts along the coast with other people Fishers claimed that the smoke and harvesting scared fish and caused low catches; the burning of kelp was even blamed for the famine in Nord-Møre in 1804 The industry ceased in Rogaland in 1780 because of complaints from farmers and fishermen, but continued further north Around 1800, 1500 tons of potash was exported from Norway to the glass and soap industry in Europe (Meland and Rebours, 2012)

In 19th-century France, there was a switch from using seaweed in glass

produc-tion to the producproduc-tion of iodine The producproduc-tion of iodine constituted the main use

of seaweed until World War II when chemical materials replaced seaweed

Conse-quently seaweed harvesters and the processing industry needed to find new uses for their products and the extraction of alginate acid emerged as a solution Though the first extraction of alginate acid began early in some countries, it was not until the end of 1950s that alginate acid production became well established (Arzel, 1998; Mesnildrey et al., 2012)

ANIMAL FEED AND FERTILIZER

Seaweeds have been used to feed livestock for thousands of years; such uses have even been mentioned in ancient Greek texts and in the Icelandic sagas (Heuzé et al.,

2015) In Iceland, where fodder was scarce for long periods, seaweeds were often fed

to sheep, horses, and cattle Seaweeds were dried and stored in barns, and there are reports of seaweeds being preserved as silage and used as winter feedstuff for sheep and cattle in the early 1900s (Evans and Critchley, 2014) In the 19th and early 20th centuries, there were numerous reports of occasional or systematic use of seaweeds

to feed livestock in France (Brittany), in the Scottish islands (Lewis), and

Scandi-navia (Gotland, Norway, Finland), mostly to ruminants (including calves) and pigs (http://www.feedipedia.org/node/19176 Sauvageau, 1920; http://www.feedipedia org/node/19173Chapman and Chapman, 1980 in Heuzé et al., 2015) On islands, and other places with limited agriculture, animals grazed seaweed because it was the only solution Today the Orkney sheep in the North Ronaldsay Islands (Northern

FIGURE 2.1

Participants gather for a festival to burn algal resources in Brittany, France.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

Scotland) are still grazing a diet almost exclusively based on seaweeds (http://www.feedipedia.org/node/17899Heuzé et al., 2015).

In Europe, seaweed was also used to improve nutrient-poor soils, for example, along the French Atlantic coast where seaweeds were gathered after storms Men gathered the algae at sea with large rakes, even in winter, and women collected it along shorelines The algae were then spread on dunes, mainly by women and children, to be dried for year-round preservation (Arzel, 1987) Farmers living around the area gathered kelp

(Laminaria spp.) to use in their fields (Arzel, 1987; Frangoudes and Garineaud, 2015)

A sharp decline of this activity occurred with the advent of chemical fertilizers and the increase of the size of agricultural land Today, soil improvement using fresh seaweed is rarely practiced, except in small private fields, such as on Batz Island in northern Brittany

In Norway the first industries processing Ascophyllum nodosum for animal food

and for fertilizer were established in 1926 and 1937 The first industry producing

seaweed meal from A nodosum was established in 1937 with nine plants along the coast These companies were merged later and still process A nodosum for the pro-

duction of seaweed extracts and meal for soil conditioner, fertilizer, and feed ments (Meland and Rebours, 2012)

supple-In Ireland, seaweed was a vital fertilizer that enabled smallholders to produce quantities of subsistence crops beyond the normal capacities of their lands Commer-cially-focused algae harvesting in this country commenced in 1947 when the Irish State of Arrama Teomara established two plants in the western part of the country

This industry processed mainly A nodosum for fertilizers and animal food It still

dominates the Irish algae industry today by production volume; they supply ous other companies with the raw material for the production of horticultural, cos-metics, and animal welfare products (Walsh, 2010) (Fig 2.2)

numer-FIGURE 2.2

Ascophyllum pile to be processed in Ireland.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

HOUSEHOLD USES

Using seaweeds and other marine plants in industry shows the creativity and

ingenu-ity of humans through experimentation In some areas of Europe, marine plants were

also used in housing construction The islanders of Læsø, Denmark, used eelgrass

(Zostera marina) as roofing material The unusual choice of this plant for roofing

came from the ingenuity that arises from necessity Local women are credited with the invention, using their skills from working with wool to process the seaweed Læsø residents also used the eelgrass to stuff furniture (eg, sofas and chairs) In the 1930s a fungal disease wiped out the local stocks Today, efforts are under way to preserve the remaining historic buildings and to relearn the processing techniques (personal communication, Læsø historian) A seaweed (use of “seaweed” is a literal

translation of the Danish word tang though technically eelgrasses are not algae but a

flowering plant) bank was founded in 2007, which is filled with eelgrass from other Danish islands The bank was founded to always have available enough eelgrass for two roofs (Fig 2.3) In 2012 the efforts of the group to preserve and maintain these techniques were acknowledged with the winning of the Europa Nostra Prize (Europa Nostra, n.d.) for education, training, and raising awareness of cultural heritage

A farmhouse with the “seaweed” (tang in Danish) roof The house was first built in the

1730s, and expanded over the years Used as a family home until 1959, it is currently a

popular destination as a local museum Læsø, Denmark.

Credit: Paulina Ramirez-Monsalve.

in Trondheim in 1870, supplied with potash from Hitra in Sør-Trøndelag In 1913, 150,000 tons of kelp was cut by hand or collected from the shore, and burned for export of 6000 tons of potash In 1933 a cheaper raw material for iodine production,

“chile saltpeter,” was found, and the production from kelp ceased (Aasland, 1997; Meland and Rebours, 2012)

A similar process was found in France where, in 1829, a local chemical engineer developed an industrial process to produce iodine from kelp About 30 iodine facto-ries were set up in the northern Finistère district where they played an important role within the local economy The factories employed a great number of kelp harvesters and skilled workers In 1944 the number of kelp harvesters registered in the national social security system was estimated at between 3000 and 4000 In practice, how-ever, probably 15,000 people were involved in kelp harvesting and seaweed gather-ing (Muller, 1944) This activity ended in the early 1950s, with the production of iodine from chemicals Local fishers’ organizations helped kelp harvesters and their families cope with their economic difficulties by distributing subsidies (Frangoudes and Garineaud, 2015)

HUMAN CONSUMPTION

As shown earlier, seaweeds have been used in a variety of ways in industry and for farming Its most common usage, however, comes from human consumption European historical sources document that in some countries local populations were

consuming seaweed far back into history Palmaria palmata has been used as human food in Norway, for example, since the Viking age In Ireland, P palmata, Chon- drus crispus , Mastocarpus stallatus, and Porphyra umbricallis were consumed in

coastal communities located on the west and north coasts of the country Seaweed was considered a seasonal food product for household consumption or sold locally seasonally For this reason, quantities were limited and edible algae did not function

as a cash crop because there was little demand for it outside coastal communities

As the following quotation shows (by C.P Idyll), Irish and Scottish populations were consuming edible seaweed until the middle of the 20th century:

In Great Britain in the middle of the 19th Century sugar wrack and other species were sold in the streets of Edinburgh by vendors crying: “buy Dulse and tongles.”

Arzel (1987 : 31)

In Galway, dulse was sold in the street as recently as 1958 The dulse in this case

is a preparation made mainly by P palmata (Arzel, 1987: 31) In France, human

con-sumption of seaweed was limited to the use of bleached C crispus to jellify milk and

make the traditional black “far” (custard made with buckwheat) in Brittany (Fig 2.4)

In Wales, laver (a Porphyra spp.) was traditionally boiled and served with cockles

and bacon, or fried with oatmeal to make laverbread (O’Conner, 2013)

Originally, laver was a defining food of the small South Wales coastal ties of fishermen and small farmers, which were transformed by the urban indus- trialization of the area in the nineteenth century …Labourers streaming into South

communi-Wales from elsewhere to work in mines and factories took up the consumption of

laver, already established locally, because they appreciated it as both a cheap,

nutritious food and also as a kind of prophylactic against the illnesses connected

with their employment.

O’Conner (2013 : 18)

In Europe, in general, human consumption is limited to specific coastal

popula-tions; this is not the case in East Asia where seaweed consumption was, and remains,

extremely high The following sections highlight the examples of nori (Porphyra spp.; Japan) and miyeog (Undaria pinnatifida; Korea) by showing the importance of

these species in the local diet over time (Fig 2.5)

JAPAN

Seaweeds in East Asia have been documented to have been harvested for thousands

of years, as evidenced by archeological findings in Jomon (6000 BCE–300 BCE) and Yayoi (300 BCE–400 CE) era sites (Nisizawa et al., 1987) Some of the earliest written

documentation on seaweed comes from the Taiho Code (701 CE), Japan’s first written

legal codex (Miyagi, 1993) This document lists murasaki nori (“purple nori”) as an item that could be used as an annual tribute tax payment (Miyagi, 1993; Miyashita,

1970) along with seven other types of seaweed and 22 other marine products Of these, nori was considered one of the best, thus making it a “commodity with high cultural value and visibility” (O’Conner, 2013: 22) (Fig 2.6) Though nori production increased through the years, it often remained a luxury item with demand outstripping

supply until true cultivation methods were developed in the post-World War II period

FIGURE 2.4

Processed dulse, Brittany, France.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

(Zenkoku, 1998; Delaney, 2003; O’Conner, 2013) Taken altogether, seaweeds are estimated to make up approximately 10% of the Japanese diet (Guiry, 2007).

Nori

Today, nori (Porphyra spp., eg, Porphyra tenera, Porphyra pseudolinearis, and Porphyra yezoensis) is one of the most ubiquitous of the seaweeds used for human consumption in East Asia According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, nori is

…among the most nutritious seaweeds, with a protein content of 30–50 percent,

and about 75 percent of that is digestible Sugars are low (0.1 percent), and the

vitamin content very high, with significant amounts of Vitamins A, B 1 , B 2 , B 6 , B 12 , C,

niacin and folic acid, but the shelf life of vitamin C can be short in the dried product.

McHugh and Dennis (2003 : 74)

Though seaweeds, such as nori, have been used by humans for millennia, for most of history their use and consumption was limited because of processing and harvesting size, making them, at times, prestige or luxury items, especially since, until the late 1950s and early 1960s, nori was gathered by hand “It’s been said it wasn’t unusual to hear about Japanese who had never eaten nori before World War Two” (Zenkoku, 1998: 23) Indeed, as one nori cultivator’s wife pointed out to a researcher, “I rarely had nori until I married [and moved to Shichigahama] Because

we lived far from the sea, [my family] always had onigiri (rice balls) wrapped in shiso (beefsteak plant) leaves” (Delaney, 2003: 170) (Fig 2.7)

FIGURE 2.7

A display of nori products in a local post office, Miyagi, Japan, 2014.

Credit: Alyne Delaney.

Throughout the world today, nori is best known as a wrapper for sushi, but it can

also be used in soups and salads, just like other species such as kombu (Laminaria japonica ), wakame (U pinnatifida), and hijiki (Sargassum fusiforme) Nori (Por- phyra spp.) is also fried as a snack with beer

KOREA

In Korea, a variety of edible different species of algae, dasima (L japonica), miyeok (U pinnatifida), umudggasari (Gelidium amansii), gamtae (Eckonia cava), and gim (Porphyra spp.) are utilized U pinnatifida (miyeok in Korean; wakame in Japanese)

is the most popular species in this country and can be found in wild and in cultivated forms Wild sea mustard harvesting is call “Miyokddol” or “Gwagam” in Korean and harvesting was—and is still—done by diving (Ii, 2012) The dry Porphyra spp (gim

in Korean; nori in Japanese) is eaten as a side dish approximately every day in Korea

Porphyra spp is eaten only in Korea and Japan

Traditionally, seaweed was a delicacy consumed by all social classes in Korea,

as evidenced by various historical sources describing the consumption and

harvest-ing of seaweed Accordharvest-ing to the Goryeo Dogyeong, a document written by Su Jharvest-ing,

a diplomat of the Chinese Song Dynasty, about the culture of the Goryeo Dynasty period (AD 918–1392) the king and nobles ate lamb, mutton, and pork while the poor population ate fish and other marine products But abalones, oysters, and seaweed were consumed by all social classes

In addition to the gastronomic qualities of seaweed, in Korea seaweed has also cultural importance Korean customs give symbolic significance to seaweed (Fig 2.8) For example, dry sea mustard (U pinnatifida) is prepared for the goddess of

childbirth and for a parturient woman (Ii, 1999) Dried seaweed is offered to the

FIGURE 2.8

Steamed rice with red beans and miyeok soup to eat on a birthday.

goddess with rice, water, and a thread for 4 weeks and people pray for the longevity

of the baby and the health of the mother every day Korean mothers also consume sea mustard (wakame; miyeok) soup for 4 weeks after childbirth; it is believed that sea mustard improves mothers’ milk because it contains a lot of calcium and iodine, which are necessary for the mother’s body (Ii, 1999)

CONTEMPORARY CULTURE AND CONSUMPTION

Many algal species continue to be exploited and used for human consumption today

In the Atlantic coastal region, and particularly in France and Ireland, there are small and medium enterprises using edible wild seaweeds in production These new types

of industry have developed in recent years because of demand from European

con-sumers (Mesnildrey et al., 2012; Walsh, 2010)

In Ireland, edible seaweeds are currently harvested, processed, and packaged by several small-scale enterprises for sale as health foods Though there has been grow-

ing public interest in seaweed products, the total national harvest of all these species combined is still less than 100 tons per annum In France, fresh seaweeds harvested

in Brittany are consumed under the name “vegetable of the sea.” Seaweeds are sold

in different forms such as raw products (dry or salty), condiments, and as spreads (mashed algae) These products, which qualify as “French”-type products, are primar-

ily sold in organic or health shops, but can also be found in delicatessens (Fig 2.9)

Other types of algae, such as nori or wakame, are also used in the preparation of Asian cuisine, such as sushi These products, however, can only be found in large, chain supermarkets (Le Bras et al., 2015) Currently, there is a push to increase the

FIGURE 2.9

Processed, “boutique” algae, France.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

use of laver in Welsh cuisine One producer, building on the fact that Welsh seaweed

is wild harvested in waters known for their purity, is exporting laver (nori) for the Japanese luxury connoisseur trade (O’Conner, 2013)

Until the late 1970s, most Japanese nori was prepared by families and consumed

in households (Zenkoku, 1998) Coastal residents, able to obtain fresh nori (or iwanori), consumed it in the forms of nori salads and in soups in addition to more processed forms, such as sheets of nori Nori harvesting families also make beer (tsumami) and other snacks from nori (Delaney, 2003) The most common usage

of processed nori is seen in the forms of sushi and onigiri (rice balls) Temakizushi, sushi made by hand at home, is a popular small-gathering, party food Onigiri are the Japanese’s answer to the sandwich—common at outdoor events such as picnics, field day events, and lunches

Nori was also an important item in annual gift giving at the middle and end of the year

Department stores, both up-market establishments like Takashimaya and koshi and mid-market chains like Seibu, compete vigorously for oseibo customers, and all the major Japanese nori producers have extensive ranges of gift-packaged nori in all its forms—sheets, strips, powered, shredded and paste—for presenta- tion This reinforces nori’s cultural value and visibility in Japan ….

2003: 171) Cultivators often complained to one resident fieldworker that nori was the same price in 2001 as it was in 1972, a result of its inclusion in processed foods Nevertheless, nori remains a key item of exchange in Japanese culture through for-mal gift-giving practices (Delaney, 2003)

NEW INDUSTRIAL USES OF SEAWEED

Industrial use of seaweed started after 1945 with the production of hydrocolloids: alginate, agar–agar, and carrageenan In Europe the seaweed processing industry, which buys fresh seaweed, is divided into two categories: those producing alginate acid and those producing kelp meal for animal food and agriculture The develop-ment of alginate acid extraction contributed to the intensification of seaweed harvest-ing Alginates are polysaccharides that are extracted from brown algae They are of commercial importance because they have very good gelling properties and also bio-logical properties, such as being natural, biocompatible, biodegradable, bioadhesive,

1 End of year and midyear gift giving An extremely important cultural practice.

and nonimmunogenic They are used in the food industry as thickening and

gell-ing agents in, for example, ice cream and desserts They are commonly used in the pharmaceutical industry in gastric alkalis, binding agents for tablets, wound dress-

ings, and dental impressions They also have industrial applications in the production

of textiles, electrodes, and in water processing as well as many other applications (Mesnildrey et al., 2012)

The production of alginate and the production of meal for agriculture require vast quantities of raw seaweed Seaweed cannot successfully be transported to other regions by road because of the high number of trucks required to move the vast volume of wet material The high cost of transportation explains the establishment

of the two main companies and other smaller companies in north Finistère, near to

where the most important kelp (Laminaria digitata and Laminaria hyperborea)

for-est is located In Norway, where the geographical area for L hyperborea harvfor-esting

is larger than that in France, the processing company uses boats for transport to the

sole operating plant In Ireland the plant processing A nodosum is located in the

west coast of the country where the seaweed is located Other small companies are located in the same area In Norway the main company that is exploiting and process-

ing A nodosum for seaweed meal and for animal food, fertilizer, food, and cosmetic

products is also based on the coast near the harvesting areas All European seaweed processing plants are subsidiaries of multinational companies, which often change ownership

In southern Europe (Spain and Portugal) the processing industry produces agar–

agar because local seaweeds are ideal for this product A Japanese company first promoted this activity in the early 1950s In the Spanish Basque country the last pro-

cessing plants producing agar–agar closed in 2000 because of regional conservation measures In Asturias, where seaweed harvesting is still practiced, limited processing

industries producing agar–agar remain In Galicia (Spain), seaweed harvesting is still

important and the number of processing industries is higher than in the two previous regions (Gallastegi, 2010) Portugal also produces agar–agar and is the fifth highest producer in the world (Marques, 2010)

Overall the number of seaweed processing plants in Europe is decreasing In some areas this is caused by a decline in seaweed stocks; in others, seaweed harvest-

ing is forbidden because of conservation reasons, as seen in the Basque country or

in Ireland In the latter country, for example, environmental protection interests have halted the expansion of mechanical harvesting (Kelly, 2005)

Currently, European wild seaweed stock processing is unable to meet the high demand for alginates and other products dependent on seaweed The processing industry, which has access to the raw material locally (eg, France, Norway, and Ire-

land), also imports dried seaweed when local supplies are out of season For

exam-ple, the two main companies based in northern Finistère import seaweed from third countries to supplement the local production, particularly during closed harvesting seasons When local supplies dry up completely there have been instances of proces-

sors moving to third countries, where they can access cheap raw materials (eg, Chile,

the Philippines, and China)

For most of history, seaweeds, such as nori in Japan and Korea, were hand gathered from naturally occurring plants, often on rocks in the tidal zone, or in the shallow, near-shore areas These seaweeds are often called “wild” or “natural” interchange-ably, and to differentiate them from seaweeds that are now farmed (also known as cultivated)

WILD HARVESTING TECHNIQUES

Two main techniques of wild seaweed harvesting can be found around the world: mechanical and manual either “on foot” (by hand, on shore/in shallows) or by div-ing In Europe, mechanical harvesting takes place on boats and is mainly found in Norway, Brittany, Galicia, and to a lesser degree in the Basque country and Ireland.The mechanization of seaweed harvesting began at the same time in France and Norway, beginning in the early 1970s The evolution and success of mechanization in both these countries helped them compare and evaluate their respective practices In

Norway, L hyperborea and A nodosum are harvested by boat using specific ment In France, L digitata and more recently L hyperborea are harvested by boat

equip-The largest boat can harvest up to 70 tons daily (Fig 2.10)

The development of mechanical harvesting in both countries is linked to the

development of the processing industry for the extraction of alginate (L digitata and

L hyperborea ) and for meal production (A nodosum) The history of each country

played an important role in the structure of the seaweed industry and in the evolution

of seaweed management These issues will be examined later

FIGURE 2.10

Landings of Laminaria digitata, Brittany, France.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

Manual harvesting and the gathering of storm cast seaweed are also important

in all the countries studied, with the exception of Norway and the United Kingdom Harvesters gather either the cast or cut seaweed accessible from the beach This does

not preclude the use of a boat In some countries, seaweed gatherers use the boat to access the seaweed and then transport seaweed from the sea to the land Diving is another way to cut seaweed and this method is mainly used in Portugal Seaweed gatherers use specific equipment to harvest seaweed, for example, knives, rakes, pitchforks, sickles, nets, etc The seaweed is cut and then put in bags or onto a boat

to be transported to the land In Ireland, for example, when the harvesting is finished,

and when the tide rises, the bundles of seaweed (A nodosum) float to the surface, the

harvester then takes a small boat out to pull the bundlers ashore A small boat can harvest between 1 and 2 tons (Walsh, 2010)

In Japan and Korea, wild and farming of kombu (Laminaria angustata) are harvested

with boats even though the harvesting gears are operating manually In Japan the main

area of L angustata harvesting is Hokkaido (Fig 2.11) More intensive harvesting of this

specie started in the 18th century because of its economic importance through export to

China Usually, L angustata is cut with the knife but on some days of the year harvesters

are authorized to use more productive gear (Frangoudes, 2011) In some Japanese

com-munities (Shoya and Meguro) the use of fishing techniques is limited, for example, to the use of a nejiri, a special tool for harvesting smaller seaweed, and is decided during the harvesting season in a common meeting of the harvesters (Iida, 1998)

FIGURE 2.11

Laminaria angustata drying, Hokkaido, Japan.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

Korean women divers operate either from the shore or by boat The ria coast in the south is lined with numerous islands and because of its large tidal range divers need to reach harvesting areas by boat during low tides These boats are equipped with a portable stove; in other areas divers are equipped with snorkels and swim

to fishing spots Traditionally, Korean divers are women who are harvesting

differ-ent species of shellfish and seaweeds, mainly U pinnatifida Seaweed harvesting by

women divers is a common practice nowadays in Korea but traditionally diving was

an activity realized by men and women in Jeju Island This activity was extended to the rest of the country during the Japanese occupation when they brought Japanese women divers to harvest seaweeds and shellfish Female divers originating from Jeju Island moved to other parts of the country, pushing out Japanese divers who could not compete with the Korean divers willing to work for lower wages and longer hours

In 1945, Korean women divers’ activities were extended to other countries such as Japan, China (Quingdao, Dalian), and Russia (Vladivostok) They would return to Jeju Island every year in the fall; in spring they would dive in national waters as well

as in Japan Harvesting tools have not been modified over time; the main tool is the

“nat.” The most important innovation over time was the introduction of wetsuits in the 1970s The use of rubber diving suits considerably improved the working con-ditions of the divers who, until then, were using normal clothes The improvement

of both working conditions and wages contributed not only to the intensification of harvesting, but also brought new women to this occupation (Fig 2.12)

In Japan, seaweeds are harvested by hand, as well as by mechanical means, on boats, and on rocky shores The most common seaweeds harvested by boat include nori, kombu, and wakame In the northeast of Japan, cultivators often operate in husband and wife pairs, though one of the effects of the 2011 Great East Japan

FIGURE 2.12

Harvest of miyeok by a woman diver.

earthquake and tsunami recovery policies is the formation of work groups, leaving women as part-timer labor in processing rather than harvesting (Delaney, 2014).

Much of the by-hand harvesting is conducted by women, either as divers ( Martinez, 2004) or along the shore (eg, aonori; hijiki) Divers (ama) in Japan are

best known for diving for abalone, but they also harvest numerous seaweeds such as

wakame, hijiki, tengusa (agar–agar), and arame (Eisenia bicyclis) Harvest seasons

and equipment were often closely regulated In one community, divers followed a yearly pattern: hijiki in early April; tengusa in late May/early June; arame in August and December; nori (wild, in February); and wakame in March–April (Martinez,

2004) In many communities, women are still the divers, with households lending

a hand with the drying/processing activities Some activities take place with only women; others are as married couples (Delaney, 2011)

Cultivation of Edible Seaweeds

Japan has seen an evolution of harvesting, from gathering wild seaweeds, to

harvest-ing a great deal through farmharvest-ing/cultivation

In the early Tokugawa era (1603–1868), nori (Porphyra spp.) was encouraged

to grow when fisher–cultivators placed camellia branches or bamboo into the

shal-lows for the nori to adhere to naturally (Miyagi, 1993; Ueda, 1973) These were the first steps toward cultivation in the 17th and 18th centuries At this time, nori was only cultivated in this manner in Tokyo and Hiroshima, where a parallel evolution

of methods took place In the mid-19th century these methods began to be used in northern Miyagi Prefecture after fishers were able to smuggle in an instructor to teach

them the trade (Delaney, 2003) Not until Dr Kathleen Drew discovered the life cycle

of nori (spores adhere to oyster shells before releasing into the water column) was true cultivation begun (Delaney, 2003; Miyagi, 1993) in the early 1950s (Fig 2.13)

FIGURE 2.13

Oyster shells with Porphyra spores.

Credit: Alyne Delaney.

The first two decades following World War II were boom years for the nori industry Nori cultivation took place throughout temperate Japan, from Kyushu to Hokkaido People from differing backgrounds began growing nori, even white-collar

workers This was the era in which nori became known as kuro daiya (black

diamonds) to coastal residents (Delaney, 2011) Nori provided a substantial income, especially to those high in the social hierarchy in the Fisheries Cooperative Associa-tion (FCA) system Further, though the work was hard, inclement weather provided numerous rest days since nori could not be dried on rainy or cloudy days (Delaney,

2003)

As technological advances were made in all aspects of nori production in the 1960s/1970s, hand-cut and hand-processed seaweed all but disappeared The changes in processing nori with automated machinery have increased production tremendously; they also increased household expenses dramatically Increased pro-ducer expenses, tied with environmental damage and social changes, pushed house-holds away from nori cultivation The nori-producing population peaked in the early 1970s and has fallen since; nationwide, the period of 1993–1998 saw a decline in the Japanese nori producer population by nearly 25% (Delaney, 2003, 2011) Most sources cite rising costs with a low crop price to explain the fall in nori-cultivating households (Fig 2.14) An aging population of fishers with few family successors, as well as the tsunami resulting from the Great East Japan earthquake in 2011, has also negatively impacted the overall cultivating population (Delaney, 2015)

In Japan the processing of consumption-oriented seaweeds takes place at the household level, often by the harvesters and cultivators themselves Especially in northeastern Japan these householders worked individually and each maintained

their own processing equipment for nori and wakame while the same species may be

harvested and processed by groups elsewhere, such as in western Japan (eg, Delaney,

2003) (Fig 2.15) Only unused parts of seaweed are utilized for the production of alginate

European Aquaculture

In Europe, seaweed farming (primarily for Undaria) has developed as an industry

in some countries but, unlike Asia, it is not managed by fishers’ organizations As a new farming activity, it falls under the responsibility of mariculture farmers In recent

years European policies have pushed for the development of this activity as part of the European Union’s Blue Growth initiative With this initiative, many countries provide subsidies to study the possibility of seaweeds in industry, especially their use

in biotechnology Since Undaria is now considered by EU legislation as an invasive,

introduced species, new cultivation of this once favorite species is banned Under this

legal framework only local, naturally occurring species are allowed to be cultivated

Saccharina latissima is chosen by the French newcomers The few tons of European

Undaria production were used for human consumption but it will not be the case

for S latissima for which it is needed to develop new markets The production of

biofuel can be one these new markets A Norwegian company call Seaweed Energy Solutions AS2 is developing plans for seaweed farming around the whole of Europe

It is proposing to create five seaweed farming clusters between Norway and Portugal

each producing 15 millions of tons of wet products for the production of 3200 million

liters of bioethanol These projects can be realized only with the development of

macroalgae farming, but for the moment, despite the different national projects ing to develop this activity, seaweed farming is still taking its first steps.

aim-Seaweed Harvesters

Harvesters are usually men and women living in coastal communities who practice seaweed harvesting as a complementary activity to fisheries and/or aquaculture (fish, shellfish, or seaweed) Seaweed harvesting, like fishing for specific species, is usu-ally a seasonal activity, requiring different types of employment for other times of the year Industrial uses of seaweed and the increasing demand for edible seaweed have modified traditional activity

Investigation into examples of seaweed harvesting around the world shows clearly that the social aspects of seaweed harvesters are important but are focused upon less

by social science researchers This is because of the research funding environment whereby funding agencies are primarily interested in management and governance issues rather than society and culture

Legal recognition of seaweed harvesting as an occupation varies from country to country and continent to continent The different examples illustrated in this chap-ter show that harvesters can be employed by processing industries, be independent workers, be listed as fishers, or simply be nondeclared workers In many cases wild seaweed harvesting can be a complementary activity of fisheries or shellfish or sea-weed farming; very few are full-time professional seaweed harvesters In some coun-tries this occupation has a negative image within local society and culture In Korea, for example, diving was considered a humble occupation for many years, though it has changed slightly since women divers were allowed to work with wetsuits and a greater income In Japan, seaweed harvesting, like fishing, is considered as an occu-

pation of the three “Ks” (kitsui, kitanai, and kusai—difficult, dirty, and smelly) In

the Spanish Basque country, local residents stopped harvesting seaweed because of low incomes This, combined with the low image within local society, has meant that today the majority of harvesters are foreigners in this region

The primary difference between the types of wild seaweed harvesters stems from the method of transport: some gather from boats while others gather the seaweed from shore These two groups are seen not only in Asia, but also in Europe The fol-lowing paragraphs provide examples illustrating the differences between harvesters among differing countries

In Europe, harvesters working on board seaweed boats have a legal status, which gives them access to health insurance, pensions, and other social benefits For exam-ple, in France, seaweed harvesters on board boats are fishers and as this activity is seasonal, the rest of the year they fish scallops or other fish French fishers have their own social security fund and they pay a monthly contribution depending on their designated category (Mesnildrey et al., 2012) (Fig 2.16)

In Norway the majority of seaweed harvesters are employed by the processing industry and they consequently have access to standard, Norwegian social benefits The others are self-employed and they, too, have access to all social rights and ben-efits In 2009 a new law on the management of wild marine resources was passed and

with this, seaweed boats and harvesters are now registered in the fisheries’ register Harvesters are now considered fishers and thus have the same rights and duties as fishers (Meland and Rebours, 2012, Frangoudes et al., 2012).

In the different Atlantic regions of Spain, harvesters operating by boat are also considered fishers All people declared as fishers contribute to the fishers’ social security system managed by the Marine Social Institute with access to its pension fund Health care is covered by the national health system (Gallastegi, 2010)

For seaweed gatherers on shore the situation is completely different Gathering

on foot is an activity undertaken by coastal populations seeking to increase their individual incomes In countries where the seaweed industry is based on manual harvesting it is difficult to control the activity and to agree on the status of harvesters

For example, in Spain’s Basque country and Cantabria region, seaweed gatherers on foot are not officially registered Furthermore, since they are mainly immigrants, it is

difficult to gather data and information on them as a group Their payment from

pro-cessing firms is based upon the quantity they harvest and is not declared for tax

pur-poses In Galicia the situation is different because regional fisheries authorities have supported the development of seaweed harvesting Nevertheless, only one subgroup

is considered as “fishers” and are able to contribute to the Marine Social Institute (Gallastegi, 2010); the others are employees of the local processing industry

In Portugal, seaweed foot gatherers and divers are declared as self-employed and not as fishers because in this country, fishers’ social security payments are made within the auction system whereby the contribution is a percentage of the fish sales Since seaweed is not sold in the auction system, harvesters cannot be part of the fishers’ social security system In theory, seaweed harvesters should contribute to

FIGURE 2.16

Harvested Laminaria being landed in Lanildut, Brittany, France.

Credit: Katia Frangoudes.

the self-employment social security system, but in practice nobody knows if they contribute to any social security system This does not mean that professional fishers

do not harvest seaweed during the season (Marques, 2010; Frangoudes et al., 2012).Prior to 2008, French, on-foot seaweed gatherers were divided into three cat-egories: the professionals who had the choice to contribute to fishers’ or farmers’ social security systems; the occasional gatherers (participating in this activity for additional income) who were illegal; and gatherers who performed limited activities (eg, only for one species) In 2008 a new system replaced the old one to the benefit

of gatherers’ social rights The new system maintains only two categories of ers: the professional gatherers, who again can be affiliated to fishers’ or farmers’ social security systems, and the temporary workers, who are employed casually by the processing industries Each year the different local processing industries ask for authorization to employ a specific number of gatherers as temporary workers and their social security is paid by the industry to the farmers’ social security system During the year, each company provides the fisheries administration with the name

harvest-of all the people employed by them The same person can be employed by different industries as their salary and social contribution are based on the quantity harvested Permanent employees of the processing industries can also be seaweed gatherers, provided they obtain prior authorization from the fisheries authorities (Mesnildrey

et al., 2012)

In Ireland the situation of seaweed harvesters is quite different In this country the majority of harvesters do not opt for any legal status except for those who hold a fore-shore license (Walsh, 2010) Though A nodosum harvesting constitutes a comple-

mentary income of the coastal population living in the western coast of this country, very few people officially declare themselves as seaweed harvesters As a result, the true number of harvesters is unknown, though it is believed numbers (2011) may be higher than in the past because of the economic crisis and the increase in returned migrants Seaweed harvesting is seen as a supplementary income to the social wel-fare provided by the Irish authorities

In Korea, seaweed divers are also considered as fishers and they are members of the local fisheries committee, as seen in Japan as well The difference between these two countries is that in Korea divers are mainly women and are the minority within the cooperatives in terms of membership In many cases, women were not informed about the destruction of their fishing grounds by infrastructure plans such as, for example, the implementation of power stations or the construction of new harbors In

2007, women divers were not compensated for the damage caused by the Taean oil spill accident or from the loss resulting from the construction of the Taean power sta-tion Women working under the umbrella of fisheries cooperatives can benefit from accident insurance, but those working for private companies cannot This last group does not have legal protection in case of accident at sea

In Japan, FCA membership takes place through households and thus women’s work takes place as household members (Fig 2.17) For some species, such as nori, husband and wives work as partners; for others, men may operate the boat while the women dive (Martinez, 2004); for still others, men as household heads are the

primary worker As seen in Korea, members of fisheries cooperatives have the option

of accessing insurance programs for accidents and losses because of bad weather They also have the right for compensation for the loss of resources to which they have rights such as through land reclamation projects or because of events such as

an oil spill As members of Japanese society they automatically access the Japanese public health system and retirement systems

INSTITUTIONS AND MANAGEMENT

Traditionally, seaweed harvesting was undertaken at the household level and for households’ own uses, such as for food, domestic, or agriculture purposes Thus

as use of algae for more industrial purposes increased over time (eg, 17th century; after 1945 in Europe), it became a source of conflicts between people both within and among communities For this reason local, regional, and/or national authori-

ties produced rules to manage the harvesting of seaweed and avoid conflicts Such rules regulate the harvesting period, limit the geographical space of operation of each

community, prescribe gear types, and produce technical regulations

In some parts of the world the shore was the property of landowners and local populations needed their authorization to harvest seaweed on the shore This was, and still is, the case in northern Europe Harvesters, who were also fishers, built their

own organizations to manage marine resources responsibly The objective was to maintain the wild resources and avoid overexploitation Fishers’ organizations pro-

duce their own rules not only to organize the harvesting activity, but also to sustain the resources (France, Spain, Korea, and Japan)

In Japan and Korea, fishers’ organizations promoted seaweed farming of the most

valuable species such as Undaria, Laminaria, Porphyra, and L japonica These

organizations are responsible for the management of activities, including both wild harvesting and farming, and often also manage seaweed “hatcheries.”

THE HISTORICAL EVOLUTION OF INSTITUTIONS

The following section presents the historical evolution of institutions and properties rights of the shore Following this the management of wild seaweed harvesting and farming activity will be also examined

Property Rights and Access to the Resources

Property rights to the foreshore and resources found here are different in northern and southern European countries In southern Europe (France, Portugal, and Spain) the beach, the foreshore, and the internal sea are in the public domain The use of this maritime space is under the responsibility of public authorities In France, for example, this power rests with the fisheries authorities at a district level In Spain the power is with the regional fisheries administration responsible for fisheries’ activities within 8 nautical miles, and with the state administration for the area between 8 and 12 nautical miles In Portugal the fisheries authorities, at national level, have the competency to manage the area within 12 nautical miles and also all fisheries’ activities In these countries there is no private ownership of the shore or

of the sea

In the northern European countries (eg, Norway, the United Kingdom, and Ireland) the maritime space can belong to the state, to the Crown, or to private land-owners For example, in Ireland, in the 19th century, some landowners were given

“seaweed rights” allowing them the access to seaweed harvesting along the ies of their lands along the foreshore These rights, given during the British domin-ion, are available if landowners are able to produce the title “Seaweed rights” are today considered one of the main obstacles to seaweed harvesting development in Ireland (Walsh, 2010)

boundar-Following the Foreshore Act (1933) all persons or companies, seeking to harvest wild seaweed, must possess a license from the Department of Environment Heri- tage and Local Government, because, the Foreshore Act prohibits the removal of

“beach material” from any area of the shore Seaweeds are mentioned cally in the Act as follow: “ …and also seaweeds whether growing or rooted on the seashore or deposited or washed up there on by the actions of tides, winds; and waves or any of them.”

specifi-Walsh (2010), Attack (2010)

Many people are discouraged from seeking licenses since the application process

is very complicated Mechanical harvesting also requires authorization, but for the moment Irish authorities do not issue such authorizations because the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) have expressed their opposition to the introduction of

mechanical harvesting of seaweed (specifically kelp) in Ireland The NPWS have expressed a negative opinion on the removal of seaweed from the ecosystem, specifi-

cally “that such activities are not compatible with the conservation objectives of, and

should not be permitted in, Natura 2000 sites” (Walsh, 2010)

In the United Kingdom, part of the foreshore, the area between mean high and low tides, can be privately owned Such is the case in large areas of Scotland Then one needs a lease from the beach-owner to take seaweed from his beach However, if

you want to harvest seaweed from below the low tide mark anywhere in the United Kingdom, you will need a lease from the Crown Estate (CE) (authority) and possibly

from the beach-owner (for access) (Attack, 2010) The CE authority, a

semigovern-mental organization, manages most of the UK seashore, which extends from mean high tide level to the 12-mile limit, on behalf of the state So if you want to harvest from the beach in areas they own, you need a lease from the CE (Attack, 2010)

Finally, in all the cases, private or public, you need a lease from the CE Only two seaweed leases exist in the United Kingdom: one in Northern Ireland for seaweed baths, but for the second there is no information at hand (Attack, 2010)

In Norway the harvesting of A nodosum is also within areas considered private

property The maritime area where the main processing company operates needs the agreement of a large number of private owners and it takes considerable energy to manage them But as the company has exploited seaweed since 1937, the landowners

(children or grandchildren) are well known to the company and they simply renew the agreement (Frangoudes, 2011; Meland and Rebours, 2012)

In the European countries where wild harvesting still takes place there are areas where exclusive rights to the resources are allocated (partly and/or fully) to pro-

cessing companies In Norway, for example, the L hyperborea fishing grounds are

allocated to one main processing company In France some of the companies are

in possession of seaweed licenses, which gives them the right to employ their own foot gatherers during the season These gatherers are often in competition with the professional foot gatherers who possess individual harvesting licenses The conflicts primarily stem from competition over space, but they also contain social and eco-

nomic elements as the harvesters employed by the industry pay less into the social security system compared to professional ones

In Galicia a similar situation is found: fishers’ organizations have the competency

to exploit the marine resources within their allocated territory if they present annual plans to the regional fisheries authorities for approval Many of the local fishers’ organizations present and approve exploitation plans even when they do not actually gather any seaweed For these organizations the objective is to avoid the presence of harvesters employed by the processing industry on the foreshore Outsiders are not really welcome on the Galicia foreshore For the processing industry, access to the resource is important because their existence depends upon it For this reason they also submit annual exploitation plans for approval by the administration In all Euro-

pean countries the presence of the seaweed processing industry is related to the

pres-ence of seaweed resources; without these resources the processing industry could move to other continents where access to resources and labor are easier

In Korea, property rights to access seaweed resources have been allocated to ers’ cooperatives and to the industry since the Japanese occupation in 1910 Histori-

fish-cal resources mentioned that the king granted some Undaria grounds to a prince It

appears that seaweed grounds were subject of inheritance and taxes similar to land

On Jeju Island the payment of taxes was made with seaweed and abalone Over time, public ownership of seaweed grounds was abandoned for the profit of private own-ership because of the influence of powerful individuals Some modifications were made with the introduction of fisheries cooperatives during the Japanese occupation but the older tradition was still maintained For example, in Hamgyongnam Prov-

ince, the main producing area of Undaria, private and public property rights coexist

Public property rights are given to the habitats of different villages while private are property of individual or share companies The Korea system is different from what

is seen in Norway or Ireland where the foreshore and part of the sea were the erty of the landowner

prop-In Japan, rights to marine resources, including seaweed, come through ship in FCAs The institutions (FCAs) are awarded ownership rights for 5–10 years depending on the species (Delaney, 2015) and members receive rights through group membership Though these rights must perpetually be reapplied for and can, in the-ory, be awarded to a different cooperative, historical usage is extremely strong and the taking away of rights is almost never seen Rights awarded include harvesting and cultivating fish and seaweeds, and can include both set and rotating gears (Fig 2.18)

member-MANAGING SEAWEED HARVESTING

Seaweed harvesting is regulated with different tools: licenses, quotas, individual quotas for boats but also harvesting size or rotation systems These regulations

FIGURE 2.18

Nets set up for seeding in inshore fishing territories, Miyagi, Japan.

Credit: Alyne Delaney.

can be managed by national and regional administration or fishers’ organizations with the approval of the public authorities (France and Spain) In countries where the processing industry harvests directly (Norway) the total amount of landings is fixed by the industry based on two conditions: the availability of the stocks and their needs.

For example, in Brittany the fishers’ organization implemented a license

sys-tem for seaweed in 1986 All decisions taken by the fishers’ organization must be validated by the state administration The maximum handling capacity of the local processing industry also plays an important role in the regulation of the harvesting

In 2008 it has imposed a weekly quota on fishers for L digitata Since 2010 the

processing industry has signed contracts directly with fishers in which they define the maximum they wish to buy from them The industry’s power is very important and fishers must follow their demands Their power is not limited to landings; it also extends to the price of seaweed In the past the price was negotiated collectively by fishers and the two industries Since 2010 each company has fixed its own price in individual contracts French fishers say they accept the prices fixed by the industry without question, as they are afraid “of imported seaweed with lower prices.”

In Norway, where seaweed harvesting is conducted by processing industries, the two companies are strongly involved in seaweed management Before the enactment

of the law on management of wild marine resources in 2009 the seaweed processing industry had the competency to undertake stock evaluation studies with scientists and

then establish the management rules to regulate the activity (Meland and Rebours,

2012) All this is now directly under state control

Both in Norway and France a rotation principle is implemented for the

harvest-ing of L hyperborea To allow for rebuildharvest-ing of the stock, each harvestharvest-ing area is

closed for 4 or 5 years after harvesting This accounts for a much slower growth rate

than with L digitata In others, license or individual quota is available for

mechani-cal harvesting The authorizing institutions or persons create rules to manage the resources and try to share the resources between harvesters especially when the area

is managed by fishers’ organizations In this case, individual quotas are given to each

boat in a way to guarantee economic viability Manual harvesting is less regulated and less controlled by the authorities Each gatherer on foot acts individually and their objective is to gather the maximum

The most complicated system is found in Ireland where public authorities, in charge of natural conservation policies, have more power in seaweed management than the administration regulating fisheries’ activities (Walsh, 2010) In Ireland there are no legal rules concerning the type of seaweed that can be cut Harvesters are fol-

lowing the traditional informal rules of harvesting, which must correspond to size of plants required by the local processing industry

Korea

The Japanese occupation (1910–1945) ended the privatization of the foreshore and resources by clans and villages with the introduction of fishing rights, laws, and fisheries cooperatives at village level Japanese occupants introduced the same

system as in Japan implemented during the Meiji period (1868–1912) After pendence in 1945, the postcolonial government followed the same model estab-lished by the Japanese colonialists The central government sets regulations, issues licenses, enforces rules, and provides benefits and subsidies to communities (Song and Chuenpagdee, 2014) This centralized system was reformed in 1963 and again

inde-in 2001 with the Korean government decentralizinde-ing decision makinde-ing and givinde-ing this power to regional authorities and to fisheries cooperatives This new system called

“Jayul Community Fisheries management” is considered by some scientists as

“comanagement” (Song and Chuenpagdee, 2014) and by others “self-governance” (Lee, 2011)

The new system gives a great amount of responsibility, including the power to make decisions, to fisheries cooperatives In addition to ensuring the sustainability

of the resources, the new system was meant to empower fishers to raise their income and boost the economy of fishing villages by improving productivity (Lee, 2011) Within the new system, fisheries cooperatives, with the financial help of the govern-ment, had to draft and execute local regulations that specify the committee composi-tion, membership rules, and rules for the management of local fisheries, including penalties (Song and Chuenpagdee, 2014) The effectiveness of the new system is based on the participation of the members of the fishing communities (villages/coop-eratives) in the decision-making process of resources management Participation of members could raise the sense of ownership of resources users Female seaweed divers are members of fisheries cooperatives but in practice they were marginal-ized historically, most likely because of Confucian principles (morals that dominate the political and daily life in Korea), which consider “men as the pillar of women” (Ii, 2001) Confucianism divides the role between gender, and women working in diving are perceived by society as an extension of women’s domestic role; con-sequently, women did not participate in the decision making related to seaweed harvesting

Since 1976, fisheries cooperatives manage the common seaweed ground in a way that gives access rights to all of their members Since 2001, fisheries coop-eratives produce rules for the management of fishery activity including seaweed

In many areas around the country the common seaweed ground was divided into three different uses: individual allocation of area (lot); an area for free harvesting; and rotation area (periodical closure giving the possibility for seaweed to grow) The targeting aim of these rules is to avoid overexploitation of the stocks and sus-

tain the resources, particularly since the price of wild Undaria increased greatly compare to the price of cultivated Undaria Korean consumers have a preference for wild Undaria because it has a better taste than farmed Undaria As a result the price of a dry wild Undaria (piece of 180 cm in length and about 35 cm in width) increased from US$77 to US$143 in 2010 Dried Undaria is now 85 times more

expensive than a kilogram of rice The increased price of seaweed gives more economic power to female divers, but this new condition has not attracted many young people