By Andrew Marshall @ theland.com.au
Seaweed could be Australia's next big farming enterprise, offering far more than just new aquaculture options to add value to our primary production sector.
Farmed seaweed's prospects as a livestock feed, fertiliser, and a carbon sink alternative to locked-up land vegetation areas make it far more than just a trendy inclusion in salads and sushi rolls.
AgriFutures Australia has calculated our largely ignored natural sea grasses and kelp could be cultivated into a $1.5 billion industry in the next two decades.
The seaweed sector could employ 9000 people and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 10 per cent.
Already an $8b a year industry overseas and tipped to be worth $30b by 2025, local seaweed farming should at very least enable Australia to replace some of the $50 million spent annually on imported seaweed.
Eco-friendly plastic
Genuine options also existed to use seaweed to make bioplastic products which won't harm the environment as they break down and may even be eaten, said Australian Seaweed Institute chief executive officer, Jo Kelly.
Seaweed based bioplastics and textiles were tipped to be a global industry worth almost $10b by 2023, while seaweed for the cosmetics market was set to be a $20b business.
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