New Study Sheds Light On Seaweed Farming Possibility

The study that showed how seaweed farming could benefit the world for many reasons was published last week. However, there are still some concerns.

According to the study the new farming method could result in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions as well as a decrease in the need for crops that grow on the earth. Publiziert Nature Sustainability

Researchers estimated that seaweed farms could survive on around 650,000,000 hectares of ocean worldwide. Persisting in Australia and Indonesia would be the most important regions. The Guardian.

“Cultivating seaweeds for food, feed and fuel within even a fraction of the 650m hectares of suitable ocean could have profound benefits to land use, emissions reduction, water and fertiliser use,” According to The Guardian the authors were alleged to have written.

Seaweed from this vast area can be used for both human consumption and as food for animals like cattle. The study also suggests that it can be used to produce alternative energy sources. The Guardian.

Researchers found that red Asparagopsis seaweed could reduce methane emissions and result in 2.6 billion tonnes of CO2-equivalent per year for cows by 2050. Asparagopsis taxiformis seaweed is a good choice for dairy cows to eat. It can help reduce methane levels in their burps. The methane is It is known As enteric methane which is a greenhouse gaz.

Researchers also found that seaweed could be eaten by humans if it is 10% of their diet. This would save 110 million hectares (or 272 million acres). The Guardian noted that this country is twice as big as France.

“In one scenario where we substituted 10% of human diets globally with seaweed products, the development of 110 million hectares of land for farming could be prevented,” Ph.D. Discussed by Scott Spillias (University of Queensland), per Food Ingredients First.

“People around the world are looking at the ocean as this big ‘untapped’ resource and asking if we should be using more of it,” Spillias said.

Experts also noted that seaweed cultivation could pose a threat to ocean life. Therefore, they will need to examine the situation and consider other benefits such as those that can be gained from a global initiative for seaweed production.

“Converting even a few million hectares means a huge amount of development,” Spillias said. “We are modifying habitats and introducing materials to places where we haven’t before. A lot of seaweed farming now is using plastic ropes and nets and we know the impacts of plastic on the ocean. If this is done on a large scale we need to find better materials.”

“Marine industries do not have a great reputation on human rights and if we’re farming seaweed largely out of sight, then we need to think of the people in these industries and make sure they’re being fairly treated,” He said.

The food you eat could pose a health risk. A 2019 study Publiziert According to the National Institute of Health, edible seaweeds are good for health and have nutritional benefits. The National Institute of Health noted that such food could help in future food security around the world. “legislative measures to ensure monitoring and labeling of food products are needed to safeguard against excessive intakes of salt, iodine, and heavy metals.”