2023-07-04 04:31:12
Specialists in productive applications from Conicet and the National Technological University (UTN) transform an invasive algae into Wakame, a food widely consumed in different Eastern countries, mainly in Korea and Japan. The plant in question is Undaria pinnatifida, an organism that traveled as an intruder on a ship more than 20 years ago and became an environmental problem in different regions of the Patagonian coast, particularly from Santa Cruz to Mar del Plata. By modifying the ecosystem, affecting the beaches and some fishing resources of the maritime coast, it became a headache for authorities, fishermen and divers.
For this reason, the scientist from the UTN (Regional Chubut) and the Conicet Fernando Dellatorre proposes using it as an edible product. In this sense, at the beginning of 2023 he traveled to Japan together with Cecilia Castaños, director of the Research and Technological Development Group in Aquaculture and Fisheries to visit various companies, learn about various technologies and improve the cultivation and processing of Wakame.
“It was an amazing trip from several points of view. In the first place, because we expected to find large factories and the use of advanced technology, and yet, in several of the places we visited, Wakame production is very traditional. The technologies they use to grow and process are simple and transferable. Although in Puerto Madryn we have been making this food on a small scale since 2015, this experience allows us to think about new lines of research to scale up production and adapt it to local palates,” says Dellatorre.
Wakame is low in calories and high in soluble fiber and minerals, particularly iodine, calcium, potassium, and magnesium. It also has proteins, vitamins A and B, and a low amount of lipids. “One of the groups of soluble fibers it contains are fucoidans. These polysaccharides are highly studied by the international scientific community due to their immunostimulant, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory effects and their anticancer action, among others. This justifies its use in nutritional supplements, in cosmetics and even in pharmaceutical products”, explains Dellatorre.
multiple products
According to Dellatorre, the different parts of the seaweed make it possible to make different products. The sheet is what gives rise to the Wakame: it has a central rib that is used to produce what the Japanese call Kuki-wakame and is mainly used to enhance the taste of salads and broths.
At the base of the alga there is a sporophyll, a fertile zone where the spores develop, reproductive structures that are used to make Mekabu, a food with a viscous and healthy texture. “In the laboratory we look for the processing parameters that maximize the quality of the Wakame. Based on this, we developed technologies for the extraction and purification of fucoidans from the Undaria sporophyll for its use in nutrition and cosmetics and with a high market value”, says the researcher.
In addition, they are carrying out studies on the use of Undaria and other species of Patagonian macroalgae as a feed additive for ruminants and of algae extracts as biofertilizers and biostimulants applicable to the agricultural and horticultural industry. Although the plant is permeable to the elaboration of different types of food such as snacks, salads, soups, dressings, and even sweets; the working group seeks to develop products in relation to local markets.
grow in scale
The researcher and the UTN collaborate with the Crappmar seaweed production cooperative in the town of Camarones, Chubut province, one of the few towns in Argentina with a seaweed tradition. This local knowledge enables technology transfer with the aim of manufacturing different products based on Wakame.
Although the manufacturing scales are small compared to Japan, the product that is manufactured in the south of the country is beginning to gain ground in Argentina. Particularly in the Autonomous City and the province of Buenos Aires, the Wakame is acquired by some gourmet restaurants, by Asian markets in Buenos Aires and also by a western market that is beginning to pay attention to products that provide nutritional benefits to the diet. “Since it contains a high percentage of calcium, it is a food that some people choose to incorporate this nutrient,” Dellatorre points out.
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