Seaweed culture and its prospects in India

Abstract

For centuries, seaweeds of various kinds have been put to several uses in the countries of south and south-east Asia (Chapman and Chapman, 1980). The utilisation of these seaweeds has come up step by step starting with using them as food, later as raw material for industrial, medicinal, pharmaceutical and cosmetic purposes. The extended coastline of India of about 7500 kIn long with wide shelf area of 0.451 million sq. kIn. provide the most suitable environment for seaweed growth. The extensive shallow bays, coral reefs and lagoons, characterised by slow to moderately strong currents coupled with sandy and coralline bottoms make the Indian coastal belts, the ideal habitat for many economic seaweeds.