How is Seaweed Protein Revolutionizing the Plant-based Meat Industry?

Seaweeds are high in antioxidant phytochemicals, fibre, vital amino acids, vitamins, polyunsaturated fatty acids, and minerals. Because of the existence of such structurally diversified and high-value bioactive chemicals, seaweed has gained popularity as a functional food ingredient in the worldwide health supplement market. With an 8100 km long coastline and a 2.17 million km2 exclusive economic zone, India is rich in various seaweed resources belonging to around 700 species. However, Indian seaweed's food and nutraceutical applications are severely limited. There is no systematic commercial production of seaweed in India other than Kappaphycus alvarezii. The regulatory framework for seaweed use as food is still being developed, and consumer acceptance is still limited.

However, different government agencies and research organisations are showing renewed interest in developing a thriving food and nutraceutical industry using India's vast seaweed resources. The paper briefly highlights the nutritional and functional food potential of seaweed before delving into the breadth of seaweed utilisation in India's food and nutraceutical industries.

Since the Paris Climate Accords were signed in 2015 and implemented in 2016, there has been a rising emphasis on living a sustainable lifestyle. This has compelled the private sector, including various industries and markets, to adopt sustainable practices, whether in manufacturing, supply chain management, or digital service delivery.

As a result, sustainable plant-based nutrition has emerged as a key topic of study in recent years. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, this research has accelerated. The pandemic has prompted people all across the world to prioritise nutrition and immunity. Globally, there is an increasing trend towards the adoption of healthy plant-based diets that boost immunity. This trend, together with continuous study, has resulted in some stunning discoveries. Examples include seaweed goods, particularly seaweed protein products.

Why Seaweed Protein is Poised to Replace Meat-based Protein

Seaweeds, or sea vegetables as they are more commonly known these days, are just algae that grow in the sea. Researchers discovered that seaweeds, which were previously thought to be inedible and fish food, are a rich source of proteins and other minerals for humans. Some of the world's foremost nutritionists have concentrated their efforts on a distinctive form of seaweed known as red seaweed.

Another major reason that will aid in the replacement of meat-based protein with seaweed protein is that worldwide supply chains for red seaweed are currently in place. This is because red seaweed is already utilised as an ingredient in various everyday items such as toothpaste, ice creams, and so on. However, in these cases, seaweeds are used as a source of agar and carrageenan rather than protein.

As a result of variables such as high protein content, exquisite taste, and powerful worldwide supply chains, red seaweeds are unquestionably better positioned than any other plant-based meat product to replace true meat-based products.

Reasons why sea vegetables could be the future of produce

Green sea veggies like sea lettuce, red sea vegetables like nori and dulse, and brown sea vegetables like arame, hijiki, kombu, and wakame have all grown popular.

As customers became more aware of the health and nutritional benefits of sea veggies, food processors, restaurants, caterers, and specialty and health food merchants became more interested in them. It's not surprising that The Independent named seaweed the top food trend for 2021.

• They are more environmentally friendly.

As factory farming practises put more strain on the soil, it will be necessary to reduce some food production from the land. Sea veggies can help to reduce carbon emissions connected with food by sequestering carbon from the atmosphere.

Sea vegetables have a far lower carbon footprint than land vegetables since they can grow in tanks or in the water. They are also low in waste, with edible portions ranging from 55% for sea purslane to 72% for sea asparagus and 75% for saltwort.

• They are more nutritious than conventional vegetables.

Sea veggies offer 10 to 20 times more protein, iodine, fibre, and vitamins A, B, C, and E than land vegetables, and certain sea vegetables contain more calcium than milk. The iron content of sea lettuce is 25 times that of beef.

Trace minerals that our bodies require make up around 7 to 38 percent of the dry weight of sea vegetables, with iodine, calcium, phosphorus, iron, and salt being the most important. The nutrition gap between sea veggies and land vegetables is predicted to widen if soil micronutrient levels continue to fall due to factory farming practises.

• They are fashionable.

Marine macroalgae aquaculture is the fastest-growing section of global food production, with worldwide seaweed production tripling from 10.6 million tonnes in 2000 to 32.4 million tonnes in 2018.

Blue Evolution sells seaweed pasta and kelp popcorn, and chef founder Enda McEvoy enjoys experimenting with sea vegetables on her menu at the Michelin-starred Loam restaurant in the United Kingdom, while in Spain, ngel León creates unique dishes with foraged sea vegetables at his Michelin-starred restaurant, Aponiente.

• They are delectable.

For a novice palate, sea veggies offer novel flavour and texture possibilities. They can be eaten raw in salads, sautéed, cooked, or blended in the same way as land vegetables can. Sea veggies, while exhibiting a variety of subtle flavour changes, often taste like cooked greens but are more savoury in flavour; sea asparagus, for example, has been described as a saltier variant of land-based asparagus. Sea vegetables frequently carry the aroma of seaside air because they contain dimethyl sulphide.

• They are simple to cultivate.

With the supply chain interruptions caused by COVID-19, there has been a renewed interest in locally sourced foods. Aquaculture or controlled settings provide a far simpler production technique than cultivating land-based veggies. Sea veggies grow quickly and do not require fresh water, simply sunlight, salt water, and mineral inputs.

In just ten weeks, a team of researchers from Florida Atlantic University's Harbour Branch Oceanographic Institute managed to grow more than 100 pounds of sea purslane, sea asparagus, and saltwort using only salt water and fish faeces as fertiliser. The survival rates of the marine plants were particularly impressive.

Aside from seaweed proteins, what other nutrients do sea vegetables provide?

Sea vegetables are a rich source of plant-based proteins, notably seaweed proteins, as well as many other micronutrients that are necessary for the human body's day-to-day functioning. The following are some of the nutrients that seaweeds provide:

• Tyrosine and Iodine

Seaweeds are high in iodine because of their propensity to absorb iodine, which is abundant in their natural surroundings, namely the oceans. Along with iodine, seaweeds contain tyrosine, an amino acid that is required for the production of various brain chemicals such as dopamine and epinephrine. Furthermore, both iodine and tyrosine aid in the proper functioning of the thyroid gland.

• Antioxidants of Various Types

Antioxidants are incredibly important for the human body since they assist to inhibit the action of free radicals, which are responsible for various maladies such as heart disease, diabetes, and so on. Aside from important antioxidants like vitamin A, C, and E, seaweeds also contain carotenoids like fucoxanthin, which aids in cell membrane protection.

• Polysaccharides

Seaweeds are high in sulfated polysaccharides, which have been shown to increase the quantity of "good" bacteria in the stomach. Polysaccharides also aid in the formation of short-chain fatty acids, which aid in the overall health of the gut. Thus, polysaccharides, and ultimately seaweeds, aid in body metabolism.

In conclusion

Seaweed proteins are slowly but steadily gaining a foothold in the plant-based meat sector. The high cost of extracting seaweed protein from these sea vegetables remains the most significant impediment to the full-fledged expansion of the seaweed protein business. However, leading companies in this market are investing heavily, and this barrier is expected to be overcome in the coming years.