“This exciting project will allow us to combine our experience in multi-component extraction from seaweeds and in polysaccharide chemistry to develop new methods that provide good agar yield whilst maximising value through extracting other components from the seaweeds”

Agar, a jelly-like substance obtained from the cell walls of some species of red algae, is used in food production as a gelling and thickening agent, but it is not currently produced in the UK and has a large carbon footprint. An innovative research project led by the James Hutton Institute and Caledonian Seaweeds Ltd is examining the potential of Scottish seaweeds as a source of agar for the food industry, with added benefits for local and rural economies and maximising biomass use.

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This article was originally posted by The James Hutton Institute