| Carrageenan
and agar bearing seaplants as raw materials for red algal galactans.
One of the highest-profile and economically significant uses of several
species of red algae is in their role as raw materials for extraction industries
that modify, extract and purify the chemical constituents known as red
algal galactans (RAGs) that comprise useful seaplant biopolymers.
The SuriaLink Carragar Community is being developed as an information source for this
important industry segment and we are also lining up trade facilitation
facilities to help buyers and sellers of these raw materials to do
business with each other.
The importance of
this Community is well illustrated by these points:
>>
Carrageenan processors have fueled the development of Kappaphycus
(cottonii) and Eucheuma (spinosum) farming in several countries
including the Philippines, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Tanzania,
Kiribati, Fiji and
Madagascar;
total market volume now exceeds 140,000 commercially dried tons per
annum at a value of over 70 M USD.
>>
Primarily wild-harvested genera such as Chondrus, Furcellaria,
Gigartina, Iridaea, Mastocarpus and Tichocarpus
are also mainly produced as carrageenan raw materials; producing
countries include Argentina, Canada,
Chile, Denmark,
France, Ireland,
Japan, Mexico,
Morocco, Portugal,
North
Korea, South Korea, Spain,
Russia and the USA;
production exceeds 25,000 dry tons valued at more than 20 M USD.
>>
Most of the world's production of agar-bearing seaweeds goes to
production of agar products; major genera involved include Ahnfeltia,
Gelidium, Gelidiella and Gracilaria and Pterocladia;
producing countries include Argentina,
Canada, Chile,
China, France,
India, Indonesia,
Japan, Madagascar,
Mexico, Morocco,
Namibia, New Zealand,
Peru, Portugal,
Russia, South Africa,
Spain, Thailand, and
the USA;
production exceeds 110,000 tons valued at more than 100 M USD.
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