Seaweed farming for food and nutritional security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and women empowerment: A review

Summary

Seaweed is a promising marine macroalgae of the millennium, providing various ecological, social, and economic benefits. At present, seaweed production reached 35.8 million t from farming, accounting for 97% of global seaweed output, with a world market of US$ 11.8 billion. Seaweeds are an excellent source of nutritious human food because of their low lipid content, high minerals, fibres, polyunsaturated fatty acids, polysaccharides, vitamins, and bioactive compounds. Many seaweed sub-products offer unique properties to develop various functional foods for the food processing industries. In the perspective of climate change mitigation, seaweed farms absorb carbon, serve as a CO2 sink and reduce agricultural emissions by providing raw materials for biofuel production and livestock feed. Seaweed farming systems also help in climate change adaptation by absorbing wave energy, safeguarding shorelines, raising the pH of the surrounding water, and oxygenating the waters to minimise the impacts of ocean acidification and hypoxia on a localised scale.

Regional applicability

Seaweed farming is not currently a major food system in the United Kingdom, though the UK has temperate marine resources and growing interest in sustainable aquaculture. The findings on climate adaptation (shoreline protection, local pH buffering) and women's economic empowerment may be most applicable to low- and middle-income coastal nations with existing seaweed industries; UK policy relevance would centre on marine spatial planning and potential diversification of sustainable protein sources.

Key measures

Global seaweed production (35.8 million tonnes), market value (US$ 11.8 billion), nutritional composition (minerals, fibres, PUFAs, polysaccharides, vitamins), carbon sequestration potential, livelihood and income outcomes for coastal women

Outcomes reported

The review synthesises evidence on seaweed farming's contributions to food and nutritional security, climate change mitigation and adaptation, and women's economic empowerment. It identifies key challenges in scaling seaweed as a staple food and in marine spatial planning.

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