Study of the ApoB 3'HVR in Galicia (NW Spain). An interpopulational analysis

Current Status of the Algae Production Industry in Europe: An Emerging Sector of the Blue Bioeconomy

“…The activities connected to the seaweed production represent an essential livelihood and source of income for some coastal and rural communities and are part of a cultural heritage that is important to preserve (Frangoudes, 2011;Mac Monagail et al, 2017). In some European coastal areas, seaweeds were traditionally gathered by coastal communities for centuries for food, cattle feed and fertilizer and from around the middle of the 20th century, were also used for hydrocolloids extraction (García Tasende and Rodríguez González, 2003;Frangoudes, 2011;Guiry and Morrisson, 2013;Mouritsen et al, 2013;García Tasende and Peteiro, 2015;Peteiro, 2018). Currently, the market for seaweed biomass is much more diversified and the technologies for biomass gathering more advanced.…”

“…With exception of Denmark, Norway, and Netherlands, harvesting (either manual or mechanical) is the dominant method for all the macroalgae producing countries when considering the number of production units (Figure 4). Countries along the Atlantic coastline, like Ireland and Spain, have a long tradition for hand harvesting of seaweeds (García Tasende and Rodríguez González, 2003;García Tasende and Peteiro, 2015;Mac Monagail and Morrison, 2020). Although used by only a minority of the harvesting companies in Europe, mechanical harvesting potentially corresponds to higher incomes and removal of larger algal volumes (Alban et al, 2004).…”

“…On the Atlantic coast of Spain, seaweeds with economic interest [mainly edible species such as Undaria pinnatifida, L. ochroleuca, Ulva spp., H. elongata but also C. crispus, and Mastocarpus stellatus which are used for the extraction of carrageenans (García Tasende et al, 2012, 2013] are harvested manually from shore, on foot, during low tides or from vessels by diving (García Tasende and Rodríguez González, 2003;García Tasende and Peteiro, 2015). The agarophyte G. corneum, exploited on the Cantabrian coast (Asturias, Cantabria, and Basque Country), is traditionally collected from beach-cast, and more recently by harvesting using hand-plucking or cutting.…”

“…The sustainability of harvesting practices has been under debate in several regions (Callaway, 2015;García Tasende and Peteiro, 2015;Marine Scotland Directorate, 2016;Mac Monagail et al, 2017;Burrows et al, 2018). Strict management plans for harvested resources are frequently put in place by the regional authorities, harvesters' associations or harvesting companies (García Tasende and Rodríguez González, 2003;Frangoudes, 2011). The recent trend showing a reduction in the abundance of some of the harvested species in some coastal areas (Araújo et al, 2016;Krumhansl et al, 2016;Filbee-Dexter and Wernberg, 2018;Casado-Amezúa et al, 2019;Wilson et al, 2019) raises additional concerns on the sustainability of harvesting from wild stocks, which potentially has an impact on the natural communities (Lorentsen et al, 2010;Davoult et al, 2011).…”

“…Currently, several edible seaweed species are sold fresh or dried for direct consumption, used as condiments or incorporated in other formulations (e.g., dressings, sauces, canned seafood, bread, pasta, salt) in several European countries (Mouritsen et al, 2013;Le Bras et al, 2014García Tasende and Peteiro, 2015). Some species like L. digitata, C. crispus, and P. palmata have an historical record of consumption as food (García Tasende and Rodríguez González, 2003;Mouritsen et al, 2013;Mac Monagail et al, 2017). Himanthalia elongata, harvested in Europe for centuries and used as fertilizer, food and for hydrocolloid extraction, is currently collected in France, Ireland and Spain mainly for human consumption (Stagnol et al, 2016).…”