5 Ways Seaweed is Changing the World
If you like sushi you know about seaweed, right? But how about seaweed in the form of pasta, granola or even seagrass rice? Here on the NSW South Coast, businesses like Southcoast Seaweed and PhycoHealth are shaking things up, with an incredible selection of seaweed products and supplements to give your gut a healthy kick.
Beyond the culinary world, there are also many other incredible uses for seaweed emerging! Here we’ll give you a quick breakdown of 5 ways that seaweed is changing the world:
Green seaweed farmed at Pia Winberg’s facility can mimic human tissue (Image Credit: Pia Winberg)
1. Seaweed as Skincare
Seaweed is a new kid on the block in the world of skincare, and marine scientist Pia Winberg is making incredible discoveries about the properties of certain seaweeds which can regenerate skin, protect collagen, elastin and strip away impurities.
Tomato sauce sachets made out of 100% biodegradable seaweed plastic (Image Credit: NotPla)
2. The newest BioPlastic
BioPlastics made from seaweed are 100% biodegradable, odourless and tasteless (you can seriously eat them). Companies like NotPla are making tomato sauce sachets, pipettes and even edible liquid containers.
(Image Credit: Matyas Rehak)
3. Kelping to reduce Co2 in Agriculture
Seaweed has a variety of uses in agriculture from feeding the animals to fertilising the crops. According to the CSIRO, feeding cows seaweed reduces the methane produced from their burps by about 20%. As for fertilising, Celtic and Scandinavian farmers have been using seaweed to improve crop production for centuries.
Seaweed used to make nanomaterial to treat wastewater
4. Seaweed in Wastewater Treatment
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), there are two main ways in which seaweed can be used to treat wastewater. The first is by reducing the nitrogen and phosphorous in sewage before it is released into rivers and the ocean. The second is by removing toxic heavy metals (such as copper, nickel, lead and zinc) from industrial wastewater.
Kelp baskets used as water-carrying vessels crafted by Indigenous Australians (Image Credit: ABC News)
5. First Nations uses of seaweed
Indigenous Australians have been utilising seaweed for millenniums for a variety of purposes like food, water-carrying vessels, clothing, cultural and ceremonial activities and fishing. Seaweed was even used in building coastal shelters alongside whale bones. It provided a great way to waterproof and windproof shelters.