Nori, Kombu, Wakame - Seaweed Farming in Japan

Nori farming in Japan

 
Seaweed farming is highly developed in Japanese coastal areas. The main species grown there are Porphyra (nori), Laminaria (kombu) and Undaria (wakame). These alone have accounted for 98% of overall Japanese seaweed production since 1984. The balance is made up of minor traditional (Monostroma, Enteromorpha and Cladosiphon) or experimental (Meristotheca and Grateloupia) crops or wild stock harvests.

Nori
Nori is a traditional food used, for example, to make sushi, which has been a highly profitable crop over the past century. Since the reproduction cycle's summer phase was discovered by Dr Kathleen Drew-Baker, farming has become easier and more lucrative - so much so that no imports have occurred since 1976. Porphyra cultivation is the largest sub-industry in Japanese aquafarming, employing 16,800 workers. In 1998, output stood at 10,326 million nori sheets, i.e. equivalent to 396,615 tons of fresh produce.
 

Kombu
Kombu is the most widely sold seaweed in Japan. It is an "all-purpose" product although it is most commonly used for bean-curd soup with kombu.
 

Wild stock still accounts for a major share of output. Several species of the genus Laminaria are used in the Japanese food industry. Laminaria japonica takes the lion's share of kombu production with a raw-material tonnage of 141,875.
 

Wakame
Undaria pinnatifida cultivation is a relatively recent development in Japan and wakame is served as a luxury food on Japanese and Korean tables. It is highly sought after for bean-curd soup or salads. Raw-material production, standing at 73,508 tons, is unable to meet Japanese demand for wakame.
 

SOURCE: By Subhuti Dharmananda, Ph.D., Director, Institute for Traditional Medicine, Portland, Oregon