Algae research blooms with exploration of taonga seaweed species

Thursday, 3 October 2019

Dr Tom Wheeler hopes his research on karengo could unlock high value nutritional secrets from the native seaweed.

Cawthron's algae research is blooming, with funding announced for research into high-value nutritional seaweed.

The funding is part of the High-Value Nutrition's (HVN) National Science Challenge, and is looking into developing a Māori taonga species of seaweed closely related to Japanese nori into a high-value product.

Cawthron is working in collaboration with Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu and Wakatū Incorporation to explore the potential of the seaweed karengo, and has received $596,000 from HVN towards that work.

Research lead Dr Tom Wheeler said that while karengo was a traditional source of kaimoana for Māori, there was little research into its biological composition or potential for the modern market, and there was a 'huge variety' of karengo to explore.

A white faced grey heron feeding among karengo or sea lettuce, an abundant taonga species that could have very high nutritional value.

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'We don't want to create another nori, we want to create a unique product that comes from New Zealand … with unique attributes, not just taste but also in health benefits.'

Wheeler said there were hundreds of native seaweed species growing around New Zealand coasts. He said with more research, there was potential for New Zealand to farm some species and create a valuable export product.

He said it was likely that karengo would be developed into a supplement.

'Our thinking is deliberately flexible because you have to be responsive to what you find … if we can show it has unique attributes, you could see it being in all sorts of foods.'

He said the aim over the two years of study was to firstly determine which species of karengo had the most promising 'bioactivities' which could have anti-inflammatory properties.

Karengo, also known as sea-lettuce, is already used for food by many in New Zealand, but is typically a wild-harvest plant.

'Karengo is related to nori, a popular Japanese seaweed that's high in protein with health-promoting antioxidant effects, so this sets some expectations around what nutritional treasure we might find through our analysis,' he said.

'The historical approach for the development of industry in New Zealand has been to start with a low value commodity and over time realise its potential and seek to move up the value chain. This investigation is about identifying the opportunity for new high-end products that support human health from the get-go.'

HVN National Science Challenge chief scientist Professor Richard Mithen said he was 'delighted' to support the research programme.

'Karengo is part of the exceedingly rich native flora of Aotearoa New Zealand. Harvesting karengo in a sustainable manner will lead to the development of new foods to benefit the health of the people of New Zealand and offer innovative export opportunities for business,' he said in a statement.

The research into seaweed, which is a type of macro-algae, is a continuation of the specialised algae research Cawthron has become known for, and for which the institution recently received $6 million in government funding.