Seaweed Facts

 

Rockweed

Seaweed offers enormous potential as a food source. In North America, scientists, entrepreneurs, harvesters, and others are undertaking an array of projects aimed at increasing seaweed production.

Seaweed Facts

"Seaweed" is the common name for marine plants and algae that grow in the ocean as well as in rivers, lakes, and other water bodies.

Seaweed is used in salads, nutritional supplements, beer, personal care products, fish feed, and other items.

Most seaweed consumed in the U.S. is imported from Asia.

Researchers are exploring the potential of seaweed as biofuel, cattle feed, and other uses.

Giant kelp can grow up to 14 inches in one day, reaching lengths of 100 feet or more.

The gel inside rockweed bulbs is useful to treat sunburns and cuts.

Seaweeds remove carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus from the environment.

There are approximately 550 species of seaweeds known to occur in Alaska. Some species are found only in Alaska waters.

The U.S. seaweed industry is still in its early stages. Production occurs in Alaska, Washington, Oregon, California, Hawaii, and throughout New England.

In the Northeast U.S., seaweed is grown beginning in November and harvested in the spring. 

Oyster farmers can grow seaweed in their offseason to provide additional revenue.

Maine has a wild harvested seaweed industry, which harvested ̴roughly 15 million pounds in 2022.

The National Seaweed Hub is a science-based, non-advocate resource for the domestic seaweed aquaculture industry and associated sectors.

Restaurant Owners Expect Increased Sales in 2010

Restaurant operators continued to report sales and traffic declines, but are cautiously optimistic about improving sales and business conditions in the months ahead.

The outlook for the restaurant industry remained cloudy in November, as the National Restaurant Association’s comprehensive index of restaurant activity registered its third decline in the last four months. The Association’s Restaurant Performance Index (RPI) – a monthly composite index that tracks the health of and outlook for the U.S. restaurant industry – stood at 97.8 in November, down 0.2 percent from its October level. In addition, the RPI remained below 100 for the 25th consecutive month, which signifies contraction in the index of key industry indicators.

“Although the RPI remained below 100 for the 25th consecutive month, which signals contraction, restaurant operators are cautiously optimistic that conditions will improve in the months ahead,” said Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the Research and Knowledge Group for the Association. “Restaurant operators reported a positive six-month sales outlook for the first time in three months, and remained optimistic that the economy will improve during the next six months.”

Thirty-one percent of restaurant operators expect to have higher sales in six months (compared to the same period in the previous year), up slightly from 29 percent who reported similarly last month. In comparison, 24 percent of restaurant operators expect their sales volume in six months to be lower than it was during the same period in the previous year, down from 29 percent who reported similarly last month.

Restaurant operators also remained cautiously optimistic about the direction of the economy. Twenty-seven percent of restaurant operators said they expect economic conditions to improve in six months, while 19 percent expect economic conditions to worsen during the next six months. Last month, 30 percent of operators said they expected the economy to improve in six months, while 20 percent expected economic conditions to deteriorate.

source: www.restaurant.org press release